Apollo Justice - Turnabout Connections
by WitchHatsFTW
Summary: Sometimes, events intertwine in ways we cannot see. When a murder occurs at the police station, is it a coincidence that Ema was the one framed? With Wright still without his badge it's up to Apollo to clear Ema's name, but he's not up against Klavier this time. Does this new prosecutor really stand for the truth? And why is he wearing that familiar mask? [Set Between AJ and DD]
1. Prologue

_**Disclaimer: The Ace Attorney franchise and all affiliated characters, settings, and concepts are property of Capcom, and I claim no ownership.**_

 _Sometimes... things intertwine in ways we can't forsee..._

 _A friendship from 10 years ago..._

 _A dark secret that would tear it apart..._

 _A chain of cases from the past... all connected by one piece of evidence..._

 _And a client both me and my boss knew was innocent._

 _I guess, even from the beginning, it never was a straightforward case._

 _If it had been... I don't think Wright would've have gotten involved himself._

 _After all... **that person** was involved in this case from the very beginning._

* * *

 _ **-Prologue-**_

 **December 17, 12:29 PM**

 **LA Police Department**

 **Criminal Affairs**

"Hey pal, give me all you got! It may seem like an open-and-shut case, but I doubt Mr. Edgeworth would take up a case like this is if was that simple! We need all the evidence we can get!"

The bellowing voice of a certain scruffy detective echoed down the halls of the police department as the large man barked orders to one of the forensic scientists nearby. As he walked on by, the detectives shiny new badge caught the florescent light above and flickered proudly on the man's coat.

"Senior Detective Dick Gumshoe" it read.

For those familiar with the bumbling man, it seemed that such a position, let alone any job that had to be performed competently, would be beyond his ability to carry out. Yet any detective down at the precinct would have (mostly) nothing but good words to say about Gumshoe. He was diligent, perceptive (most of the time, anyway), and his near-constant high spirits rubbed off on his coworkers and subordinates. It was enough to keep everyone around the station in good spirits.

Especially now, one had to commend the detective's loyalty and determination regarding his long-term associate and friend, Miles Edgeworth. On days like today when the Chief Prosecutor himself was getting involved in a case, Gumshoe would crack down hard and make sure everyone was doing all they could to give his friend the evidence he needed.

Today was one of those hectic days at the station, filled with busy people running around everywhere, fetching evidence and going over reports. Those not assigned to any particular task were diligently filing papers and finishing reports at desks adorned with tinsel and miniature evergreens in spirit of the upcoming holidays.

Gumshoe saw the forensic scientist he had sent out turn the corner and the scruffy man turned and outstretched his arm to grab the evidence the man had retrieved for him.

It was at this moment that an unmistakable sound echoed through the halls of the police station and startled everyone into silence.

The sound had come from behind the forensic scientist, so in reaction, the bespectacled man jumped and whirled around with wide eyes.

He had been the first to point it out.

"W-was that a gunshot!?"

As if his voice was the trigger, everyone including Gumshoe sprang into motion and began bolting towards the origin of the shot.

Gumshoe found himself standing in a sea of scientists and police officers gathered around the door to one of the evidence rooms, unable to all pile in to witness what had happened. Gumshoe began pushing through the crowd, apologizing and telling people to move at the same time, and eventually stumbled far enough into the evidence room to get a good shot at the scene.

"It's… a murder!?"

Upon seeing the scene, Gumshoe turned around and took charge of the situation.

"Everyone, back up! I want a photograph of this room taken immediately! Until then, no body touch the crime scene. I want someone to call the paramedics right away, got it, pal!?"

A resounding "Yes sir!" erupted from the crowd around him and Gumshoe pulled out his cellphone. As he pushed his way back through the dispersing crowd, he heard the phone ring twice before someone picked up.

"Gumshoe, you do realize that my court case is tomorrow, not today, correct? You don't need to keep updating me on-"

"It's not that, Mr. Edgeworth sir!" Gumshoe cut off, looking back behind himself with a worried expression on his face, "There's been a murder at the station!"

"At the station!? Who'd be so bold? Surely with all the witnesses around there has to be a suspect ready, correct?"

"Ah, that's the thing sir… see… the suspect…is, um…"

"Go ahead, Gumshoe, spit it out. You should know by now that I'm not so easily phased by things like this."

Gumshoe hesitated a bit longer before taking a deep breath and replying.

"The suspect… um… the suspect is Ema Skye, sir!"

* * *

 **December 17, 12:41 PM**

 **Prosecutor's Building**

 **Chief Prosecutor's Office**

"Yes, well… I have a pretty decent grasp of the situation now, thank you. I'll go assign a prosecutor to the case immediately. Keep up the good work, Gumshoe."

The electronic beep of a cell phone could be heard as a man standing at the large window in his office hung up and let out a long sigh. The now-bespectacled Chief Prosecutor cast his gaze over the little portion of Los Angeles visible through his office window as he brought a steaming tea cup up to his lips.

"Ema Skye, a dead body, and a couple dozen police officers as witness… It seems straightforward enough…"

Miles Edgeworth took a sip of hot tea and let it sit in his mouth for a few moments before he swallowed and looked down at his phone.

 _Is this what drove Wright to defend all those years? This feeling of absolute confidence that the accused party is innocent?_

The maroon-suited prosecutor shook his head and gave a weak smile.

"I shouldn't let my biases interfere with the facts. As long as she is innocent, she will not be declared guilty… so long as she has a good defense attorney, that is."

Edgeworth once again turned to his phone pressed a button. Immediately the name "Phoenix Wright" popped up on the screen and Edgeworth brought his number up on the dial pad. Wright himself had yet to retake the bar exam, but Edgeworth had kept in touch and knew all about "Phoenix's prodigy". The young defense attorney Apollo Justice that had somehow wound up at the Wright Anything Agency.

Edgeworth knew that he need only mention Ema's name to his old friend and the man would offer Apollo up to defend her before he even asked the antenna-headed man himself.

Just as Edgeworth was about to press the call button on his cell phone, someone knocked on his office doors.

Edgeworth turned around and frowned briefly before setting down his cup of tea and calling out.

"You may come in."

The door to Edgeworth's office swung open and a man stepped in. Something about the man seemed familiar, almost eerily so, but Edgeworth was positive he hadn't seen him around much.

 _Come to think of it… I heard some people speaking of a rookie prosecutor who arrived recently… could this be-_

"Mr. Edgeworth, sir!" the man replied. His voice was strong and deep, but there was still a hint of young energy in it. No doubt this was the rookie Edgeworth had heard about.

"You're… the new prosecutor, correct… Mr…?"

"Gamma," the man filled in, "I'm Prosecutor Gamma, sir."

Edgeworth narrowed his eyes and brought his fingers up to his glasses to adjust them. "Gamma" was quite an unusual name.

 _Then again, with friends named Phoenix and Gumshoe, I really don't have much room to comment…_

"Anyway, I hope I'm not overstepping my bounds… but… I heard about what happened at the precinct. If it's not any trouble…. I would like to take the case, sir."

Edgeworth's eyes narrowed and he frowned visibly. Edgeworth himself had just gotten the news, and this prosecutor was already thinking about taking the case? Right now, everything about this prosecutor, from his strange name to his brash request, made Edgeworth uneasy.

Edgeworth gave the prosecutor a once-over and frowned. He didn't really think anything about the rookie was strikingly familiar, but no matter how many times he looked over the young man, he couldn't for the life of him figure out what it was.

 _I feel like I'm missing something glaringly obvious…_

Realizing the man was still awaiting an answer, Edgeworth let out a sigh and adjusted his glasses again.

"I'm sorry, I can't accept your request. While it's not unconventional for prosecutors to request cases, this case in particular has recently been brought to my attention as well. I need some time to decide who I'm going to give this case to. I… I hope you weren't hoping to get it because it seemed like an easy win."

The man turned away towards the door and frowned.

"Yes, I'm sorry. I understand. I'll leave the decision in your hands, Chief. Ah, but you should know something about me. Going after an easy win? I don't want anything like that. Winning and losing… those words mean nothing to me, when it comes to the courtroom."

Edgeworth's brow raised and he glanced at the back of the rookie prosecutor that had come into his office to make such a bold request. The man was already halfway out the door, but his words had intrigued Edgeworth.

"Wait… Gamma, was it? If winning isn't what you desire, then why did you become a prosecutor in the first place?"

The prosecutor turned around and gave Edgeworth a small smile.

"Do you even need to ask? The one thing I desire… is uncovering the truth, sir."

At that, the mysterious man exited Edgeworth's office without another word. As Edgeworth watched the door closed, the source of the strange sense of familiarity dawned on him.

"That… that mask!"

The rookie prosecutor could absolutely not be _that man,_ but such an unusual mask was unmistakable. There was no doubt in Edgeworth's mind that the mask he had been wearing was the same.

The prosecutor turned back down to his cell phone and gave a soft smile.

 _"_ _The case hasn't even started yet and it's already interesting. Wright… I'm definitely going to need your help on this one."_

 ** _To Be Continued..._**

* * *

 **AN: For those of you thinking this story looks familiar, you're not wrong. This is actually the second time I've rewritten this story. I went back and read the old rewrited, and it was just downright cringe-worthy to read. Bad writing, worse dialogue, and a glaring contradiction in a genre that's supposed to clear up any confusion by the end of the story. Since I plan on writing some form of sequel in the future, I wanted to write something better to springboard off of and reintroduce the mysterious "Gamma" in a better light.**


	2. Investigation Day 1 (Pt 1)

**_-Chapter 1-_**

 **December 17, 1:16 PM**

 **Wright Anything Agency**

"So… you're absolutely certain he was wearing _that man's_ mask?"

The ex-defense attorney and sub-par piano player known as Phoenix Wright stood at the main desk in his office as he clutched a cordless phone to his ears. Clad in a casual outfit consisting of a dark grey sweatshirt, black sweatpants, and a light blue wool cap, anyone familiar with the old Phoenix Wright would be taken aback by his appearance. In truth, the former defense attorney had fallen quite far from his days of glory seven years ago, but his fall was not a direct result of his own actions. The darkness of a certain twisted defense attorney had haunted Phoenix and all other parties involved for those seven years, and it had been a little over two months ago that the full truth behind that seven year curse had been brought to light. With his name cleared, Wright had considered regaining the badge that had been stripped from him, but as it stood now he seemed to be intent on going without it.

Not that that would stop him from keeping his nose out of the legal world. Even in those long 7 years he never had, and he doubted he ever will.

"Yes," the voice answered on the other end of the phone. There was absolutely no doubt about that voice. Phoenix would recognize it anywhere as his friend and old rival in court, Miles Edgeworth, "Wright, you and I both participated in that trial. I think it would be hard to mistake that mask when you see it, even after seven years."

Wright nodded, even though there was no way Edgeworth could actually see the gesture, "Well, there's no arguing with you there, but… No, I don't think you're wrong about this. The only question is, what does that mean?"

"…. I believe it will be up to your protege to figure that one out, Wright. After all, I've decided to put that man on the case after all."

The corner of Wright's mouth curved upwards as a small smirk crossed over his face.

"I think I'll keep a close watch on this case after all," Wright replied, "Alright. I'll let Apollo know he's got a client."

"Very well. Well, I'd love to chat about this longer, but I do have my own trial to prepare for. Maybe I'll see you at the courthouse tomorrow."

Without so much as a proper farewell, Edgeworth hung up and left Wright listening to the monotone hum of the dial tone. Wright gave a smirk and placed the phone back on the receiver before looking out across the cluttered office.

 _Apollo might appreciate another case after weeks of making him clean the office bathroom… To be honest, it's been rather slow for us these days… at least when it comes to clients._

Just as Wright was thinking about the red-clad defense attorney, Apollo walked into the agency and panted with a defeated look on his face.

 _Yikes! I wonder what's gotten into him all of a sudden!_

"Apollo?" Wright asked, tilting his head to the side in mild confusion, it looks like you've been running.

"Trucy… tried to kill me…!" Apollo exclaimed through short breaths. The red-haired attorney had barred himself up against the door and was looking rather pale, now that Wright thought about it.

"She tried to kill you? I do hope this is some kind of misunderstanding…"

Suddenly, furious knocking filled the room as a certain angry magician banged on the office doors.

"Polly! I was in the middle of a rehearsal! How am I supposed to prepare for my show at the Wonder Bar if my practice assistant runs off on me?"

"Practice!?" Apollo yelled through the doors, his Chords of Steel in full force, "Don't practice the 'Swords through Box' trick on me! Can't you use that Mr. Hat of yours!?"

Even though she was on the other side of the door, Apollo could hear the sound of Mr. Hat's mechanism springing open and the wooden clacking of the mannequin's mouth as Trucy used her Mr. Hat voice through the door.

"Ah, but Polly, my dear, I have to stay in tip-top shape for my appearance tonight!"

"Ack! So you're admitting I could've been skewered!"

As the two argued through the office doors, Wright laughed lightheartedly and grinned at Apollo.

"Alright, you two. Settle down. Apollo, let Trucy into the office, I don't think she's going to try to skewer you here."

Apollo sighed and removed himself from the door, allowing the dressed-up magician to walk into the office.

Trucy turned to Apollo and placed her hands on her hips, forming her mouth into a pout as she bounced.

"Polly, as a magician, I take my job seriously! I wouldn't practice a trick on you if I wasn't ninety-five percent certain I wouldn't hurt you!"

Apollo slumped over and his iconic hair horns flopped down over his face as he began to sweat, "Uh, what about that other five percent?"

Trucy crossed her arms and looked up in thought.

"Hm… I guess it would be hard for you to defend me if you're the one pressing charges, huh?"

Wright laughed at the pair's antics, but then straightened his expression and turned towards his daughter.

"Trucy, I'm going to have to ask you save skewering Apollo for another day."

Apollo looked over at Wright with the same deadpan expression, "Um, how about we settle for not skewering me… at all…"

"Actually, Apollo, I have some good news for you. You'll be able to put that attorney's badge to good use very soon."

Apollo instantly straightened up and crossed his arms, his expression all business.

"Really? I have a client?"

Wright frowned, "Well, technically she hasn't requested your services yet, but I'm sure she'll be willing to let you defend her. After all, she is an old friend of mine. You've met her before, too."

Apollo's eyes widened in shock and he once again began sweating, "Wait… don't tell me… 'She' wouldn't happen to be Ema Skye, would she?"

Wright nodded, grinning, "Yeah. It's a long story, but she's in a bit of a bind. She hasn't requested our services directly, but a friend of mine filled me in on the situation. There's been a murder at the police station, and it seems like Ema's been framed. She's already been arrested and is down at the detention center already."

Apollo's frown only deepened after hearing this news.

"Wait, but if it's at the police station, then I'm sure there are tons of witnesses... and it'd be almost impossible to investigate the scene!"

"Yeah," Wright nodded, "They're already calling it an open-and-shut case. I've even heard they're giving it to a rookie prosecutor."

Apollo's shoulders slumped.

"The first big case I have in three weeks and it's already looking bad…"

Wright laughed.

"Don't worry, Apollo. I'm sure things aren't that straightforward. I don't remember a single 'normal' case from my days as an attorney. You've read about that one case where I cross-examined a parrot, right?"

Apollo looked at Wright with a deadpan expression, "…Let's hope that's a torch you'll never pass to me, please…"

"You should probably get going," Wright pointed out, turning his attention to the clock in the office, "It's already 1:30, and you'll probably need the rest of the afternoon to investigate."

Apollo turned his head to the clock as well and straightened up immediately.

"Right. I'll head over to the detention center first. It's no good investigating if I haven't even offered my services to the client."

Trucy turned to Apollo and replied, "I'll come with you, Polly!"

"Hey, weren't you supposed to be practicing?" Apollo pointed out.

"Yeah, but we haven't gotten to investigate together in a while!" Trucy noted.

Apollo didn't bother following up with a retort. He knew well enough that Trucy wouldn't relent either way. Apollo turned to leave the office with Trucy in tow, and Wright watched them until they made their way out and shut the door completely.

Wright's smile turned to a serious glare as the former Attorney turned to one of the shelves next to his desk. The shelf was covered with clutter now, but behind all the colorful magician's props and random junk that had accumulated over seven years, there lay old files and books from Wright's days as the legendary defense attorney.

He pulled out an old, dusty manila folder from the depths of the shelf and checked the name written on the tab.

Nodding to himself, Wright sat himself down on the couch in the office and crossed one leg over his other knee, leaning back and lifting the file up in front of him. As he did so, a single photo and a few papers fell out, and Wright set folder down on the cushion next to him as he picked up the dropped papers. Now that the folder was out of his hands, the name written on the tab could be read clearly.

"Diego Armando"

* * *

 **December 17, 1:30 PM**

 **Detention Center**

 **Visitor's Room**

"Well, here we are..."

Apollo slumped his shoulders and gulped, a nervous look plastered on his face. Trucy's eyes widened and she brought a hand to her mouth in surprise.

"Man, Polly! You sure don't look good. You look like you're the one who's behind bars!"

"I'm just nervous about Detective Skye… I mean, she's usually in a grumpy mood even when she hasn't been framed for murder, so now I'm afraid she'll be- Ack!"

Apollo jumped backwards when he saw Ema Skye appear behind the glass window in the visitor's room. From the irate look on her face, Apollo figured his fears were realized.

 _Yikes! If looks could kill, she'd have another murder charge on her hands right now!_

"So now I'll be… what exactly!?"

Apollo heard himself swallow loudly as Ema turned to look at him and cross her arms.

"A-ah… Detective Skye… I uh…"

"Oh, it's you… Apollo, was it?" Ema recalled, frowning and looking to the side, "The guard told me you're here to offer to defend me."

"Ah… yeah…" Apollo nodded.

 _Geez… she's worked on enough of my cases that you'd think she'd recognize me a little more… Maybe she's just being distant because she's irritated._

"So… uh… Wright told me you got into a pretty big mess, so…"

Ema's eyes immediately lit up at the sound of Wright's name.

"Oh yeah," she said, looking off to one side, "Come to think of it, you're with Wright's agency, aren't you? So, Wright sent you to take my case?"

"Yeah. Although, it's still up to you in the end. You're the client, after all."

Ema frowned and gave Apollo a once-over before nodding as though in resignation.

"Well… you're nothing like Wright, but I guess you'll do," Ema replied, fiddling with her hair.

Apollo's made an exasperated face and slumped his shoulders.

 _Thanks for the vote of confidence…_

"Anyway, if it's not too much trouble, I'd like to ask you a few questions about the case."

Immediately Ema's expression soured and the labcoat-clad detective crossed her arms and frowned.

"Unfortunately, I don't really remember anything about what happened…"

"W-WHAT!?"

Apollo was taken aback by this, recoiling visibly from the shock. Immediately after his shock subsided, the red-vested attorney's shoulders slumped and he let out a sigh.

 _Please tell me I'm dreaming…_

Trucy looked over at Apollo as though she were impressed and smiled.

"Wow, Polly," the magician pointed out, "I don't think I've ever seen you this crushed! Not even in court!"

 _It feels like all the remaining hope I had for this case was extinguished at once…_

Apollo placed his finger on his temple and took a deep breath.

"So, Detective Skye," Apollo began, "Could you tell us what you do remember?"

Ema frowned again and looked up in thought, "Hmm, well, I remember going to bed last night, but I don't anything from this morning at all. My first memory of today is waking up in the detention center…"

"Wow," Trucy chimed in, "Sounds like a bad way to start the day!"

"Are you kidding me!?" Ema looked forward and furrowed her brow in anger, "I wake up in the detention center with a spitting headache, and the next thing I know I'm being called in for questioning!"

Apollo nodded, "I imagine that didn't take long, considering your condition."

"It was brief, thankfully, although one of them didn't even believe I had amnesia!" Ema replied, "I'm a detective! The least they could do is treat me nicer!"

 _As a suspect, I don't think you get the same privileges as a detective. That would kind of defeat the point of being detained here…_

Apollo thought for a moment before deciding upon his next question.

"So," he asked, "did they at least tell you why they arrested you?"

Ema pouted and twiddled with her hair grumpily.

"Even worse..." she replied sharply, "They showed me. Here's a photo they took right after we were discovered."

Ema produced a color photo and with the guard's permission slipped it through to Apollo.

The photo was of the inside of some room with a bunch of lockers in in, as well as a couple of shelves and a filing cabinet. Two bodies sat collapsed on the floor of the room, one surrounded by a large pool of blood and the other surrounded by broken glass. It was undeniable that the body surrounded by glass shards was that of the unconscious Ema Skye, but the other body- the body of the victim- was a man Apollo didn't recognize wearing a police uniform.

What was even worse about the whole situation is that, sitting in Ema's limp hand was a handgun that was issued to all detectives at the precinct.

"That's one of the evidence rooms near the forensics lab. There's only one door in or out, and I was told that the second the gunshot rang out, a bunch of police officers rushed towards the scene."

Apollo frowned.

"In other words," he began, placing a finger on his forehead, "We've got a room with no way out but through a sea of witnesses."

 _Why do I have a bad feeling about this!?_

- **Crime Scene Photo added to Court Record-**

Apollo calmed down a little and regathered his thoughts. There were still a few things Apollo wanted to clear up.

"Detective Skye…" Apollo turned towards the brown-haired detective, "You mentioned something about having a 'splitting headache' when you woke up. Did you get that checked out yet?"

"Don't need to…" Ema pouted, raising her hands to the back of her head, "I've got a nasty bump in the back of my head. It's been bothering me all afternoon!"

 _Which is to say, a little over an hour and a half._

"Yowch…" Apollo replied before furrowing his brow in thought once more, "Hmm…. Perhaps your memory-loss and that particular injury are related."

 _Hmm… well, I think that's all Ema will be able to tell me for now... I guess I won't find anything else out unless I can investigate the scene…_

"Well, thanks for answering our questions. Don't worry, Ema! We'll clear your name!" Apollo replied.

Ema frowned and crossed her arms, but didn't say anything else to the young attorney as she stood up and let the guard escort her back to her cell.

Trucy expression turned downcast and she frowned, "Poor Detective Skye… it must be hard waking up behind bars…"

Apollo nodded, "Yeah… that's why I'm going to give it my all to defend her. For her sake, and for Wright's! Come on Trucy, let's go investigate!"

* * *

 **December 17, 2:16 PM**

 **LA Police Department**

 **Front Entrance**

The second the red-clad defense attorney saw the bustle around the front entrance of the police department, his heart immediately sank.

"Can..." Apollo stuttered, watching police officers and detectives walking in and out at regular intervals, "Can we even get in to investigate the scene!?"

Trucy smiled and her eyes flashed with a mischievous glint.

"Don't worry, Polly!" Trucy smiled, clutching her fists together, "Daddy told me once 'the best way to sneak into a scene that's off-limits is to act like you're supposed to be there in the first place!"

"…" Apollo turned and gave Trucy a very unamused look.

"What? I think its good advice!"

"I can see that working with me, but what are you going to say? 'I was planning on performing card tricks for the forensics team'?"

"Hehehe…" Trucy stuck her tongue out and knocked on her forehead playfully through her silk hat, "I guess you're right."

Apollo shrugged, "Well, it's worth a try, I guess."

With Trucy in tow, Apollo waltzed up to the door of the police station as inconspicuously as he could manage and slipped through the main entrance.

"We did it, Trucy, we-"

"Stop right there, pal!"

Someone called out from behind Apollo in a booming voice and ran up to the two would-be infiltration experts with an angry look on his face.

The large man had short brown hair and stubble peppering his chin came rushing up to Apollo and Trucy and scowled at them fiercely. The man's dark green overcoat flapped behind him as he ran, and his dark shoes made squeaking noises every time he took a step.

 _Ack… did he step in a puddle or something? You can hear his shoes from across the station!_

"Hey Pal! You guys don't look like detectives! Sorry, but I'm going to have to ask you to leave! Normally we wouldn't be so uptight about visitors at the station, but there's been a murder!"

Apollo drew attention to his lapel and pointed to the tiny, round badge pinned to his vest collar.

"I know. That's why I'm here. I'm Detective Skye's defense attorney."

"Hey! I hope you weren't planning on trying to investigate the crime scene, pal! It's strictly off-limits to anyone outside of the investigation team!"

 _Ack! Shot down before we even got a look at the scene!"_

"Hey, Apollo, you think this guy has a weakness like Detective Skye?"

Apollo looked the scruffy detective up and down and shook his head.

"There's nothing that immediately stands out. I doubt he'll be that easy to crack…. Man! I wish I knew what Wright would do in this situation!"

"Hey pal!" the scruffy detective yelled, "Did you just say Wright? As in, Phoenix Wright!?"

Apollo scratched the back of his head.

"Ah… yeah. He's something like my mentor, I guess. Do you know him?"

The scruffy detective gave a sideways grin and chuckled loudly before replying, "Are you kidding, pal? Surely Wright's mentioned me once or twice! I'm Senior Detective Dick Gumshoe! Back in the day I would help Mr. Edgeworth out with his cases, and Wright would bumble around with his purple-robed partner and present his attorney's badge to everyone."

 _From what Wright told me about you I get the impression that you did more bumbling around than he did, but it's funny to picture Wright about as clueless about some of his cases as I am about this one…_

"So, since you and Wright go way back, mind if he check out the scene?"

Gumshoe's shoulders shook as he chuckled with a friendly smile plastered on his face, but then his expression changed and he put on a confident smirk.

"Nice try, pal! Just because Wright's an old friend doesn't mean you get special treatment! Rules are rules! The evidence room is off-limits!"

Apollo's face grew weary as he slumped his shoulders.

 _I didn't think it'd be that easy…_

Apollo turned to Trucy as if she were about to ask the magician for some help or advice, when the doors to the police station swung open and an interesting figure stepped into the station. There wasn't really anything too flashy or abrupt about the way the person entered the police station, but it was perhaps because Apollo was at his wit's end with this train wreck of a case so far that he turned to look towards the door.

The man who walked in was nothing short of bizarre.

It wasn't like he had an over-the-top ridiculous appearance and it wasn't like he looked particularly out-of-place at the police department. After all, he was rather well dressed in a dark grey dress shirt, light green tie, and black slacks and looked like he could fit in rather well with the other detectives and investigators at the precinct.

Or rather, he should've been able to, if it weren't for the distractingly out-of-place piece of science-fiction strapped to his face.

The metal mask the man had on covered his forehead, eyes, and much of his nose, and had three glowing red lines running horizontally across it. Apollo couldn't see any sort of strap to the device, so it seemed as though it were attached to his face rather than being worn over it.

Aside from the strange eyewear, the man also had unnaturally white hair for his age. While his face was mostly obscured, the parts Apollo could see, as well as other aspects of his appearance, gave the impression that the man standing before Apollo was around his age, if not a little older. With that being said, the silver hair the man sported looked all but natural.

He wore the unnaturally silver hair long, the somewhat spiky hair swept back over his head and tied back into a short, spiked ponytail. Three strands came forward, sticking out a little before falling over the center of his mask.

Gumshoe came up to the man as he walked towards the three and nodded, "Ah, you must be the new prosecutor Mr. Edgeworth told me about!"

The masked man nodded.

"That's right. I'm Proescutor Gamma. I was assigned to this case not too long ago."

Gamma turned towards Apollo and paused. Apollo wondered if Gamma was looking at him or not, but he couldn't tell for sure with the metal mask covering his eyes.

"You… that's an attorney's badge. Are you here to investigate the murder already?"

Apollo was taken aback initially.

 _S-someone… someone recognized it!? I didn't even have to show it to him!_

"Polly! Stop spacing out and answer him, this could be our chance!"

As Trucy's voice brought him out of his shocked stupor, Apollo turned back to Gamma and nodded.

"Y-yeah. My name's Apollo Justice. I'll be defending Ema Skye in court tomorrow, so I was hoping to take a look around the crime scene."

"No can do, pal!" Gumshoe shouted. Gamma and Apollo both turned back to him, one considerably more exasperated by the scruffy detective's insistence than the other, "I told you, that area's off-limits to anyone not involved in the investigation!"

Gamma frowned and tilted his head to look at Apollo.

"Uh, Senior Detective Gumshoe, was it? I'm a rookie, so I might not have any room to speak, but wouldn't it be unfair to prevent the defense from investigating at all?"

Gumshoe arched an eyebrow at the mysterious new prosecutor and crossed his arms smugly.

"Gamma, you know that only Prosecutors are officially allowed to investigate, right?"

Gamma shook his head.

"I know, but doesn't that seem a little unfair to you? Ah… maybe I'm speaking out of line. You do have more experience than I do, after all. At any rate, I'd like you to make an exception for the defense this time."

"W-what!?" Gumshoe asked, reeling back in surprise.

"I... I have the authority to do that, right?"

Gumshoe slumped his shoulders and a small pout appeared on his face.

"Well… erm… yes you do, Mr. Gamma… but-"

Gamma held his hand up and nodded.

"Then that settles it. The defense may investigate the scene. In the meantime, Senior Detective, I'd like to ask you some questions about the investigation so far."

Gumshoe nodded and the two headed off to discuss the case.

Apollo stood in the middle of the station, blank-faced and wide-eyed in utter confusion.

"W-what just happened?"

Trucy smiled, "I think the prosecution just gave us permission to investigate."

Apollo placed his finger on his forehead and scrunched his face up.

 _Yeah… but that's crazy… what's going on here!?_

"I don't know what he's up to, but if we're allowed to investigate, I'm not going to complain. Now, let's go find that evidence room!"

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

* * *

 **AN: So, here's the first chapter. Admittedly not a whole lot of investigating gets done, but it'll pick up, don't worry. I'm trying to make the story seem like the games, so there's going to be times when you see evidence and other things added to the "Court Record". If you guys are interested, I could probably post the court record at the beginning of every chapter, but otherwise I'll just count on you guys to keep a record of your own when it comes to what Apollo's found.**


	3. Investigation Day 1 (Pt 2)

_**-Chapter 2-**_

 **December 17, 2:19 PM**

 **LA Police Department**

 **Forensics Lab**

"Let's see… all the commotion seems to be centered around this area, so that evidence room must be around here somewhere… Ack!"

Apollo and Trucy had been making their way calmly through the police department, confident that Gamma's decision to let them investigate had likely circulated around enough. Of course they had been stopped by a few incredulous officers, but usually someone more aware of the circumstances would come to clear things up. Even still, Apollo had wished Gamma or Gumshoe would've given him some sort of letter of introduction to avoid the tedium of being stopped over and over again by anyone still unaware of the situation.

Apollo was starting to worry that the person before him right now was another one of these "uninformed parties".

The forensic scientist who had come to stand before him with his arms crossed looked downright cartoonish. He had a weird, gawky stature and long lanky features, from a large head resting on an impossibly thin neck to a ridiculously frizzy hairstyle that would give Albert Einstein a run for his money. The man had a goofy grin in his face and parts of his lab coat and hair were charred black from what Apollo guessed was some sort of lab mishap.

"S-stop right there! You…. You two aren't police officers!"

 _Not again….!_

Apollo let out a long sigh and Trucy looked over at him in utter shock.

"Wow Polly! I've never heard you sigh like that!"

Apollo slumped his shoulders and turned to his investigative partner.

"I learned it from someone I hung out with a lot growing up… it's kind of a long story, so I'll tell you more about it later."

Apollo turned back to the forensic scientist and nodded.

"You're right, we're not police officers. I'm Apollo Justice. I'm Detective Skye's defense attorney for the recent murder that took place here."

"W-WAIT!" the cartoonish man shouted, leaning a little too close to Apollo for his comfort, "You're Ms. Skye's Attorney!?"

Apollo leaned back to escape the lanky scientist's invasion of personal space and nodded uneasily.

"Y-yeah… that's what I-"

"Quick! Ask me anything! I'm totally willing to help!"

Apollo stared blankly at the strange man and blinked a few times.

"….."

"Well! Come on! I'm ready to answer anything!"

Apollo scratched the back of his head with a nervous smile plastered across his face.

"W-well, uh… I was going to investigate the evidence room. But-"

"Oh! You wanted to see the scene of the crime!? Yes… I see… I see… w-wait!"

The lanky man frowned and crossed his arms again.

"Even if I really want to help you, I can't let you in the evidence room yet!"

Apollo slumped his shoulders again.

 _Do I really need someone else to explain it to him!?"_

"Ah, actually," Apollo began, trying to smooth things over without wasting another five minutes, "We've been allowed to investigate the scene by Prosecutor Gamma himself, so-"

"I know!" the lanky man shouted, interrupting Apollo's explanation, "When I heard about that, I was incredibly delighted! But right now, the evidence room is swarming with investigators! You won't be able to get in even with Gamma's permission!"

Apollo felt an insatiable urge to punch the nearest wall and scream profanities until he couldn't breathe. So far, everything about his case was totally botched. Ema couldn't remember anything that had happened that morning, the police had some pretty incriminating evidence already, and now Apollo couldn't even investigate the scene.

Apollo had worked with the detective on a few cases in his past, and while it was true he was mostly defending her for Wright's sake, he couldn't deny that he wanted to defend her himself. She just didn't strike him as the kind of person to commit murder.

 _If I can't win this case… not only would I be letting Wright down… but I'll be letting myself down as well. I know Detective Skye is innocent, but if I can't even get any evidence to prove it… then…!_

"Ah! Don't look at me like that! Like I said! I'm totally willing to answer any of your questions while you wait!"

Apollo placed a finger on his forehead and scrunched his face up in a mixture of thought and disappointment.

"Fine," Apollo answered after a long pause, "We'll ask you some questions."

 _I guess this isn't a total loss. Maybe this guy knows something that could help our case._

"First," Apollo began, crossing his arms and regaining his composure, "Well, I guess it'd be useful to know who you are in the first place."

"Ah!" the scientist jumped back, "Right, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Derek Fanne! I'm a seasoned forensic scientist for this very lab!"

Apollo nodded, "Alright, Mr. Fanne. If it's not too much trouble, I'd like to ask you what you were doing at the time of the murder."

Derek knocked his fist against his forehead a few times before his eyes lit up like he just remembered something, "Ah! You mean this morning! I was actually working at the other lab earlier. There was supposed to be a pretty big case coming up, and I heard even the Chief Prosecutor was going to be involved! When I heard the gunshot, I was so nervous that I nearly dropped my beakers!"

Apollo frowned. Something about that statement stood out to the defense attorney, and he figured it would be a good idea to get more information about it.

"Hold on a minute," Apollo continued with his questioning, "About the case you just mentioned… you spoke about it in the past tense… can you tell me more about that case?"

Derek scratched the back of his head awkwardly and cast Apollo and Trucy a sympathetic look.

"S-sorry… I actually don't know much about the case… I heard it was supposed to be a retrial of an old case from two years ago, but only the people directly involved with investigating were allowed to know anything… I heard that they didn't even detain the old suspect from that case to keep it secret."

Trucy frowned and turned to Apollo.

"That seems really bizarre that they would go through such lengths, don't you think, Polly?"

Apollo nodded at Trucy and frowned.

"It's definitely strange, but in this day and age, I can understand why the police might want to go through such measures."

Trucy's eyes lit up in realization, "Ah, you mean that 'Dark Age of the Law' thing that Daddy keeps bringing up…"

Apollo nodded solemnly and turned back to Derek to ask more questions.

"Um… earlier, I couldn't help but notice your… erm… _enthusiasm_ to help us… Mind me asking what that was all about?" Apollo inquired.

Derek smiled sheepishly and began swaying back and forth on his feet.

"Ehehe, well, of course I'd help you! You're Detective Skye's defense team, after all! I have to help her in any way I can! If I don't, I'll never see her cute grumpy face ever again!"

Trucy balled her fists and grinned like only an energetic high school girl could.

"Polly, I think he has a crush on Detective Skye!"

 _Y-yeah… I wouldn't say you're wrong…_

Apollo shook his head and turned his attention back to the scientist before him.

"So, you know Detective Skye?"

"Of course I know her!" Derek shouted back, almost indignant, "Such a marvelous detective! Her passion for science, her adoration for the chemistry! Every time she walks by the lab she stares at it longingly! Oh how I wish she could be here, in this lab! We could analyze bloodstains together!"

Apollo slumped over and he felt his two spikes fall over his forehead.

 _How… romantic…_

"We-well… erm…" Apollo paused for a moment, "Ah! Could you tell me anything about the victim?"

 _I have a photo of him, but I don't remember Detective Skye mentioning his name or anything else about him at the detention center._

Derek immediately snapped out of his lovestruck ramblings and frowned.

"Ah, the victim… hmm… I think it was Allen Renchez. He was an officer here at the precinct. To be honest, I didn't really know him that well. We didn't really talk to each other."

Apollo's eyes widened and he frowned slightly. There was something about that last statement that bothered him.

"I'm sorry," Apollo's eyes narrowed at Derek, "Could you repeat that again?"

"Ah… you mean about Renchez? I didn't really know him that well. He didn't work with forensics a lot and we never really talked to each other."

There it was again. Apollo could feel the ornate bracelet around his wrist tighten at the words of the man in front of him. This was it, he was going to-

Suddenly, Apollo felt the bracelet tighten once again. With wide eyes, the red-clad lawyer glanced down at his arm and saw Trucy's hand clutching his wrist as she leaned into him. It was a false alarm.

"Trucy! You're grabbing my wrist, let go!"

Trucy's eyes widened as she realized her mistake and she pulled her arm back immediately.

"Sorry Polly, it's just that… that guy over there is glaring at us..."

Apollo turned his attention away from Derek to spot a very shady looking scientist staring at the two of them with crossed arms. The man had black hair that was neatly swept backwards and wore a pair of square, narrow framed glasses. The collar of his labcoat was popped up and he appeared to be wearing a casual black t-shirt underneath, as well as a pair of jeans as opposed to slacks or anything else more professional.

To top of the look, around his neck he wore a spiked choker of sorts that seemed to have something akin to a cat bell attached to it.

Realizing he had been noticed, the shady-looking scientist slinked over to where Apollo and Trucy were standing and flashed them a toothy, sideways grin.

"Heh, I see you've noticed me, Mr. Lawyer! Tell me, you really insistent on defending that clueless girl detective?"

Apollo, trying not to let the young scientist's cocky attitude get to him, merely nodded in affirmation.

"That's right, I'm Apollo Justice. I'm Detective Skye's defense attorney."

"Name's Victor Darke. I'm a forensic scientist. Actually, I'm the best forensic scientist at the precinct, bar none. Oh yeah, and about your defense tomorrow…"

The kid swept his hair back with his hand and shook his head in disbelief.

"Hahaha, give it up, man, she's guilty. Anyone with brains can see that."

Trucy frowned and turned to Apollo, indignant.

"This guy's such a stuck up jerk!"

"H-hey! Don't get mad at me about it!"

Apollo frowned. He really didn't want to question this guy any more than he had to, but it was part of his job and he needed more information.

"So, I take it you were here when the incident happened. Could you tell me more about what you were doing?"

"My job," Victor replied curtly, crossing his arms, "I was working in the other lab. I was doing most of the work because all my lab partners were bumbling idiots. Especially that guy over ther! Fanne? Ha! He's worked here way longer than I have and he's still a dunce! He's almost as bad as that stupid detective you're defending!"

Apollo frowned.

 _Hm… it seems like this guy has something against Detective Skye... That might be important._

Apollo straightened up and narrowed his eyes, taking a totally professional approach to his questioning.

"Mr. Darke, was it? I'd like to ask you what you have against Detective Skye, specifically."

"What do I have against her? Pfftt… she's such a dunce! She's always running around and acting like she actually knows stuff about forensics, but like I said before, she's totally clueless! I heard that in a couple of cases she actually had a couple of rank amateurs from the defense team help her out with the forensics! What a laugh!"

 _Er… yeah… you're kind of talking to those "rank amateurs" right now._

Trucy glared at the very unpleasant scientist before turning to Apollo.

"He did it. He's totally guilty! My Wright blood speaks to me!"

"H-hey! We can't be making brash assumptions like that without any evidence! Not to mention you're not a Wright by blood..."

 _Though I will admit his attitude towards Detective Skye definitely doesn't rule out the possibility he'd want to frame her._

"Heh, you're too transparent," Victor scoffed, "You're thinking, 'man, this guy's attitude means he'd probably do something like frame Skye' right? Well, sorry, but I've got a rock solid alibi. I was working hard on that one case's investigation. The one that mouth-breather over there blabbed to you about. Anyway, there were at least three other scientists in the room at the time, so I couldn't have done it!"

Apollo frowned. He had about enough of questions with this guy.

"Just one more thing I wanted to ask," Apollo began.

Victor sighed and raised his arm up to stop Apollo from speaking.

"Heh, next you're going to ask me, 'Did you know the victim, Allen Renchez?' The answer is no. I barely saw the guy. I don't like associating with many people around here, to be honest."

 _I'm sure the feeling is mutual._

Apollo raised his hand to his wrist to feel his bracelet more carefully, but there was nothing there. He wasn't lying.

"Well, I think that's all we're going to get out of these two. Maybe we should go back down and talk to Gumshoe and that new prosecutor."

"No need for that pal!"

The loud, booming voice of Senior Detective Gumshoe made Apollo and Trucy jump in place and whirl around to face the large man.

"It seems that the initial investigation is already finished. I was kind of hoping to participate in the investigation a little more, but it looks like I've missed my chance."

Gamma shrugged, as though he wasn't particularly bothered either way by the fact.

"I'll probably check the crime scene later, but right now reading through the investigation reports is my top priority. In the meantime, I'm sure the evidence room will be clear. You can probably use this time to do some investigating of your own."

Gamma made it sound nonchalant, but something about the way he said it made Apollo uneasy. It was like he was giving Apollo and Trucy the upper hand by letting them investigate before he even saw the crime scene. Apollo was used to Klavier letting him investigate crimes to some extent, but the sheer level of openness Gamma was taking with his investigation made it seem like he had some sort of ulterior motive.

Still, Apollo wasn't going to turn down his one chance to investigate an almost untouchable crime scene.

Apollo cast Gamma a final, suspicious stare before turning to Trucy and clenching his fists.

"It's time to do some investigating!"

* * *

 **December 17, 2:49 PM**

 **LA Police Department**

 **Evidence Room**

Apollo and Trucy made their way into the evidence storage room and began to glance around uneasily. Apollo wasn't sure he'd ever get used to the sensation of standing in a place where someone's life was taken, though he supposed it was something he should be a little used to by now.

 _I wonder if I'll ever get to the point where I can walk onto a crime scene without batting an eyelash… I hope I never become_ that _jaded…_

"So," Apollo turned to Trucy and crossed his arms, "I guess this is where they found the victim, Allen Renchez, and Detective Skye, then…"

Trucy nodded before turning her attention back to the room and looking around, prompting Apollo to do the same. Much like how it was portrayed in the photo, the Evidence room was a small room with a wall of evidence lockers separating the room into two halves, stopping just short of the back wall to allow access to the second half of the room. It was along this back wall that, at least from what the picture showed, the bodies were found, collapsed on the floor next to some filing cabinets for case files.

Indeed, when Apollo and Trucy came to the end of the long room, they came face to face with the white tape silhouettes of two figures, one male and one female, as well as a rope marking off where a previously rather large blood pool had formed around the male corpse. Aside from the white tape, there was seldom anything on the floor of the room, though the floor still seemed wet from mopping up.

 _Well, I guess the wet floor explains why Gumshoe's shoes were squeaking like crazy earlier, he must've just come from the evidence room._

Trucy frowned and turned to Apollo, crossing her arms and looking up as though in thought.

"Something seems… wrong about the crime scene… it's like… it's almost too clean!"

Apollo looked around and frowned. Trucy had a point. Aside from the white tape, there wasn't much sign that any sort of crime had taken place here. Apollo was used to messy, bloodstained floors and clutter everywhere that could work as evidence. This crime scene, by comparison, was so clean that he could barely believe it.

"This is it, Trucy… if we can't find even a scrap of evidence to use here… I don't think we'll be able to do anything in the trial tomorrow!"

Trucy's eyes widened and she covered her mouth with her hand in surprise, "Oh no! Does that mean Detective Skye will be…?"

"No!" Apollo shouted, startling Trucy with his Chords of Steel, "I don't believe Detective Skye's the murderer! There must be something here that can help prove that! We just need to look for it!"

Trucy nodded, still a little shaky from Apollo's outburst, "R-right… so, where do we start?"

Apollo turned back to the crime scene and thought.

 _Hm… Let's see… I should examine anything that seems odd or out of place._

"Hey! Trucy, look at that shelf over there."

Apollo pointed to a shelf nearby Renchez's outline and Trucy looked over to the shelf.

"Notice anything unusual about that shelf?"

Trucy pondered Apollo's question for a moment before her eyes lit up.

"Oh! It looks like something's missing!"

Indeed, on one of the bookcases there was a shelf cluttered with all manners of what looked to be different types of trophies or rewards. On one of the shelves there was just enough empty space that it looked like there was supposed to be something there.

"Yeah," Apollo nodded, "It's possible the missing trophy isn't related to the case, but we should definitely make note of this."

 **-Missing Trophy added to Court Record-**

"I wonder what all these trophies are doing here anyway." Trucy pondered, placing a thoughtful finger on her lip, "Maybe their rewards for the forensics team!"

"Well," Apollo replied, "I'd imagine since this is the evidence room, it's more likely that they're all pieces of evidence that just happen to be trophies…"

Trucy leaned in to read the engravings on some of them.

"Number One Evidence Handler, Number One Ballistics Analyzer, Number One Investigation Report Filer…"

Trucy turned back around with a smug look on her face and Apollo slumped his shoulders in exasperation.

"L-let's just move on…"

Apollo continued to scan his eyes back and forth through the room until he noticed something catch the light and glint from under one of the rack-like metal shelves set up next to the filing cabinets along the back wall.

"Hey, Trucy, it looks like there's something under here. I'm going to take a closer look."

Apollo made his way over to the metal shelf and pressed himself to the floor so he could see the narrow space between the floor and the bottom-most shelf more clearly. There wasn't much under the shelf save for a thick layer of dust, but one thing in particular caught his eye almost immediately.

"Hey, Trucy!" Apollo exclaimed, "There's a broken piece of glass under here!"

Apollo reached out and pulled it out before standing back up and holding it up for Trucy to see. Trucy observed the glass for a short amount of time before her eyes widened and she held her hand up to cover her mouth in surprise.

"A-Apollo! Look, on the glass… there's…!"

"Yeah, there's some blood on it. It's pretty fresh blood too, otherwise it would be darker or flaking off. This is probably connected to our current case!"

 **-Glass Shard added to Court Record-**

"Hmm…" Trucy frowned, "Polly, I don't think there's anything else here!"

Apollo nodded before frowning. The crime scene was pretty immaculate otherwise. Apollo didn't see anything else he could use for evidence.

"All we've got is a piece of glass, but if there's nothing here, there's nothing more we can do."

Apollo was used to hopeless cases, but this seemed almost beyond hopeless. A clean crime scene, an amnesiac client, a room with only one way in or out, and plenty of witnesses who would no doubt claim that no third party fled the scene.

Apollo truly believed that Ema was innocent, but proving it in court seemed almost impossible at this point. All Apollo had as hard evidence was a shard of glass with blood on it, and he couldn't know until the trial just how far he could run with that.

As Apollo was internally lamenting, the door to the evidence room opened up and Apollo heard the sound of dress shoes on tile as someone stepped into the room. In surprise, Apollo whirled around only to come face to face with the one person he wanted to see the least at the moment.

"Hm… they certainly did a good job of cleaning up in here."

Gamma looked around as he made his way towards the back of the evidence room. He stopped in front of Apollo and Trucy and turned towards them, though once again Apollo couldn't quite get a good read on Gamma at all.

"Oh, you two are still in here? How's your investigation going?"

Apollo couldn't quite tell, but he got the impression there were some smug undertones hidden underneath the nonchalant manner in which Gamma had addressed Apollo. The red-clad defense attorney had the impression that Gamma knew ahead of time that the crime scene would be barren of clues, and he was subtly rubbing that fact in by asking them how they were doing.

"Actually," Apollo replied, grinning smugly, "The investigation's going great."

The confidence Apollo exuded was naturally just a front, but he really wanted to see if it would get under Gamma's skin.

"Good," Gamma replied, grinning a bit more openly, "and here I was beginning to think that this case was so simple I'd bore myself to death. I look forward to facing you in court."

Apollo's eyes widened as he felt his bracelet constrict around his wrist. There was no doubt about it this time. Trucy was standing behind him off to his other side, so this wasn't another false alarm.

 _Gamma's… lying? What's he lying about? Maybe I should try asking him about the case._

"Uh, Prosecutor Gamma, was it? Do you mind if I-"

Before Apollo could even finish asking the question, the red clad lawyer heard his phone ring in his pocket. Flustered, Apollo quickly retrieved his phone and checked the caller ID before realizing it was Wright.

Apollo quickly picked up and held the phone to his ear.

"Uh, hey," Apollo answered awkwardly, "What is it?"

"Apollo, I know you're probably in the middle of your investigation, but there's something I want to talk to you about as soon as possible, mind heading back to the office?"

"Actually," Apollo began, "We're pretty much done with the investigation already. We'll head back as soon as possible."

"Great. I'll be waiting."

Apollo turned to Trucy.

"That was Wright. He wants to talk to me about something or other, I guess we should head back."

As Apollo informed Trucy of what the call had been about, he caught Gamma turn towards him out of his peripheral vison at the name "Wright". Apollo wasn't sure if he had just imagined it or what, but there definitely seemed to be something strange about this mysterious prosecutor.

As Apollo and Trucy left the evidence room, Apollo turned back to look at Gamma one more time, as questions raced in his mind.

 _Who is he? What is he up to? Why was he so interested in the name "Wright"?_

* * *

 _After Trucy and I left the police department, we returned to the office as soon as possible._

 _As to what Wright wanted to talk to me about… He said he wanted to personally help me with my investigation._

 _After I showed him what little information I had, He made a decision._

 _I was surprised when he told me he was going to come to the courthouse tomorrow._

 _I didn't understand what he wanted then. That was something I wouldn't find out until much later._

 ** _To be continued..._**

* * *

 **AN: Here you guys go. Chapter 2 and some actual investigation. I hope this isn't too dull or anything. Next chapter's going to be in court, which I've always found more interesting to write, so hopefully that'll be something to look forward to if you didn't entirely enjoy the way this chapter went. Hope you guys enjoy.**


	4. Trial Day 1 (Pt 1)

_**-Chapter 3-**_

 **December 18, 9:52 PM**

 **District Court**

 **Defendant Lobby No. 2**

For Apollo, the agonizing wait from the time he arrived at the courthouse up to the time when the trial began was the absolute worst part of being a defense attorney. On most mornings, pre-trial nerves would strike the moment he woke up (assuming, of course, that he even slept at all) and carry on up until he stepped behind that familiar bench of his. Naturally he was still nervous during the proceedings, but once the first cross-examination rolled around Apollo usually found himself too focused on the trial to be nervous about it (at least until Klavier blew a hole in his argument and trumped whatever evidence Apollo had).

This morning was decidedly different, not because Apollo was any less nervous than normal, but because this time it was a question as to how long Apollo could extend the trial on a single shard of glass and some circumstantial evidence.

It didn't help, of course, that ever since they escorted the very irritable-looking Ema Skye, she seemed rather adamant to avoid conversation. Apollo, not being much of an ice-breaker himself, was trying to think of something to say that wouldn't bring to immediate attention the fact that he had submitted the shortest evidence approval request since his courtroom debut.

It was at times like these when Apollo relied upon his ever-faithful companion, assistant, and horrible reader of atmospheres Trucy Wright to either break the ice or say something so incredibly off-key that anything Apollo could follow up with would be reasonable by comparison. Unfortunately, Trucy's absence had been all but insisted upon by her father, who had become ever more mindful of her rather shaky school attendance record recently and instructed her to attend school today.

This, of course, also meant that Apollo would be standing at the bench alone. Something he wasn't eager of in the slightest

 _This atmosphere is too tense! I feel like I should say something to Detective Skye, but…_

"You know, if you're going to keep glancing over here with that look, you might as well just tell me how badly your investigation went."

"Aack! S-sorry, Detective Skye," Apollo flinched, slumping his shoulders a little.

Apollo had known Ema for a while now, and the he would even consider them to be on good terms (at least, as good as you could get with someone who was almost perpetually grumpy in the face of anything but science and Wright himself), but he didn't feel they were close enough at all to switch to first-name basis with her. Even though yesterday she had probably been incredibly irrate and well too distracted with both her situation and her headache to realize how distant she had been, it only strengthened Apollo's impression that their "friendship", if it could be called that, was anything but personal.

Still, now was no time to reflect on his standing with his own client. His nerves vanished as he realized how absolutely pathetic he must look. He wasn't being a very good defense attorney if he couldn't put on a brave face for Ema. Apollo straightened up and shook his head of any remaining hesitation. He crossed his arms and put on a serious face, not quite ready or able to give her a confident grin.

"I would be lying if I told you I have a lot of evidence on my hands, but there's so many questions that there has to be something there I can grab a hold of!"

Ema nodded solemnly and twiddled with her hair, "I'm just surprised you got to investigate at all, what with the crime scene being at the police department and all…"

"Actually," Apollo frowned, crossing his arms, "It was Prosecutor Gamma who let us investigate in the first place."

"W-what!" Ema replied, eyes wide with shock as she pressed her hand against her cheek in surprise, "T-the prosecutor for this case _let_ you investigate!?"

 _Um… if I remember correctly, you let me investigate at crime scenes all the time…_

"That's different! It was scientific!"

Apollo was caught off-guard by Ema's outburst, mostly because he hadn't realized he had spoken his thoughts aloud.

"Well, either way, I'll do everything I can to clear your name."

Ema nodded, though Apollo couldn't quite tell if she was confident in him or not. She had likely seen enough of his cases to know that he wasn't one to give up easily, but the photo she had been shown of the crime scene was pretty incriminating. Apollo was sure the only one Ema would trust wholeheartedly to get her out of this mess was Wright.

Before Apollo could say anything further, the Baliff ran into the room rather abruptly.

"Mr. Justice! Ms. Skye! The trial is about to begin!"

Apollo checked the time and nodded.

"Right! Don't worry, Detective Skye! Leave it to me! We'll be fine!"

* * *

 **December 18, 10:02 AM**

 **District Court**

 **Courtroom No. 4**

 ** _\- Day 1 -_**

 ** _Court is Now in Session_**

 ** _All Rise_**

The ever-present Judge who seemed to preside over every trial Apollo ever took sat at his bench and clacked his gavel, beginning the trial with a distinctly gentle yet powerful voice only that old man could pull off.

"Court is now in session for the trial of Ema Skye."

Apollo stood at the defense's bench alone, a sensation he was not yet entirely accustomed to, but nodded anyway and replied with a strong voice.

"The defense is ready, Your Honor."

Apollo looked out across the courtroom to see the strange new prosecutor, Gamma, standing on the other side. Despite the fact that this was his first day in court, Gamma seemed relaxed, his face mostly hidden behind that strange robotic mask of his.

Gamma nodded once and replied with a calm voice, "The prosecution is ready, Your Honor."

"Aah!" the judge's eyes seemed to widen as they fell upon the visage of Prosecutor Gamma, and he spoke in a surprised tone, "Incidentally, am I to understand that today is your first day in court?"

Gamma nodded, "That is correct, Your Honor. My name is Gamma. I became a prosecutor only recently. This is the first case I've ever taken."

The judge nodded, but his expression still seemed a little puzzled by Gamma's appearance.

"Ah… it's just that… that mask… it seems…"

"Familiar?" Gamma finished, a small, almost somber smile appearing on the prosecutor's face, "You probably do recognize this mask. While I have never stood in this court before, this mask definitely has. It's… a memento, of sorts."

"Ah, that explains it! Yes," the judge nodded, sounding rather pleased with himself, "A mask such as that is certainly quite distinct. I didn't think I was mistaken when I thought I had seen it before."

Apollo frowned as he furrowed his brow, pressing a finger to his forehead in thought.

 _Yesterday, Wright seemed to have a lot of questions about that mask as well… Why do I get the feeling that there's more to this "Gamma" that meets the eye?_

"At any rate," Gamma replied, "If we're done talking about my mask, I'd like to give my opening statement to the court."

The judge's eyes widened at Gamma's comment and he nodded affirmatively, "Yes, very well. You may begin."

Gamma nodded.

"Yesterday at the police station, an officer was shot and killed in one of the evidence storage rooms. The incident took place in the middle of the day while plenty of officers and detectives were working at the station, so naturally the gunshot raised a lot of attention. When everyone rushed to the site, they were met with this scene."

Gamma presented the crime scene photo to the courtroom smirked.

"As you can see, there were only two people in that room. The victim, Allen Renchez, and the defendant, Ema Skye!"

"My… this… this scene certainly is incriminating! Why, the defendant even has a gun in her hands!"

The judge's shocked expression and statement set off something within the gallery and numerous murmurs erupted from the crowd. The judge lowered his head disapprovingly and clacked his gavel, silencing the masses.

"Order!"

Once everyone had settled down, the judge turned his attention back to Gamma. "Very well. Are you prepared to call your first witness?"

"Naturally," Gamma replied coolly, nodding, "This next witness was not only head of the investigations yesterday, but also someone who was at the station when the murder occurred. I believe his testimony will leave no doubt that the defendant was the only one who could commit this crime!"

The judge nodded.

"Very well. Call your witness."

Gamma turned his head to look directly at Apollo and grinned, "The defense calls Senior Detective Gumshoe to the stand!"

A few moments and some fumbling around later, Detective Gumshoe was standing at the witness stand with a confident grin plastered across his face.

"Witness, state your name and profession."

"I'm Dick Gumshoe, sir! A senior detective down at the precinct," Gumshoe answered.

The judge nodded, "You've given testimony a number of times in this court before. Very well. You may begin your testimony."

 **Witness Testimony**

 _\- Case Overview -_

"The victim, Allen Renchez, was a police officer who worked at the station. He was assigned to finding and delivering evidence back and forth to the forensic scientists working in the lab. When the gunshot rang out, everyone was alarmed and rushed to the evidence room at once. No one left the evidence room, so the defendant was the only one in the room at the time! The victim had been shot in the chest and died instantly, so there was nothing we could do for him when we arrived."

 _\- End Testimony –_

The judge clacked his gavel down and nodded.

"Very well. The defense may begin its cross-examination."

Apollo slammed his fists down on the bench.

 _Right now, I need to focus on getting more information about the case._

 **Cross Examination**

 _\- Case Overview -_

"The victim, Allen Renchez, was a police officer who worked at the station-"

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

"Could you describe the victim in more detail?" Apollo requested.

Gumshoe looked up and shrugged, "He was just a random guy down at the precinct. He didn't really stand out much, to be honest."

"Hmm," Apollo frowned, "was there anyone who openly harbored ill will towards the victim?"

Gumshoe shook his head, "Sorry, pal. He really didn't stand out much. He wasn't the kind of person who went around making enemies."

Apollo nodded, conceding his line of questioning.

The judge stepped in, clacking his gavel once before turning his attention towards Gumshoe.

"Very well, witness, please continue."

Gumshoe nodded eagerly.

"He was assigned to finding and delivering evidence back and forth to the forensic scientists working in the lab-"

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

"You said the victim was delivering evidence back and forth, but the lab's right next to the evidence room, correct? Why would an officer be assigned to such a mundane task?"

Gumshoe furrowed his brow and looked up in thought before nodding.

"Yeah, I guess you're right, pal…"

 **"** **OBJECTION!"**

Gamma brought his right arm up for a brief moment before slamming the back of his clenched fist down upon the prosecutor's bench.

"Even though the labs are right next to each other, fetching evidence still takes time. It would be inefficient for the forensic scientists working there to constantly stop their work to get up for new evidence. Isn't that right, Detective Gumshoe?"

"A-ah, yes, that's how we do it down at the precinct, sir!"

The judge nodded, "Very well. Witness, you may continue with your testimony."

"Right, so…"

Gumshoe picked up where he left off.

"When the gunshot rang out, everyone was alarmed and rushed to the evidence room at once-"

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

Apollo pressed his finger to his brow in thought.

"About what time would you say the incident occurred?"

Gumshoe looked up in thought for a moment.

"What time… hm… well, I'd say it was about 12:30, pal."

Apollo nodded, "So, the murder occurred at 12:30, then… but how does that implicate the defendant?"

Gumshoe frowned at Apollo and gave him an indignant glare, "I was just getting to that, pal!"

"No one left the evidence room, so the defendant was the only one in the room at the time-"

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

Apollo slammed his fists down on the desk and glared at Gumshoe, "How can you be so sure she was the only one in the room at the time of the shooting!?"

Gumshoe smiled, as though he fully anticipated that question, and answered with a smug look on his face.

"The evidence room is rather small, so there's only one door in or out. Incidentally, I was asked to prepare a mock-up of the evidence room for the court."

Gumshoe presented an overhead view diagram of the evidence room, marking the door and the location of any permanent fixtures such as the evidence lockers, filing cabinets, and shelves lining the walls.

The judge looked at the diagram and nodded, "Very well. The court accepts this into evidence."

 **-Evidence Room Diagram added to Court Record-**

Gamma slammed the desk again.

"As you can see, there's only one way into the room. Any 'third killer' the defense would have us believe exists could not have escaped the room unnoticed."

Apollo slumped over and began sweating bullets at the defense bench.

 _Great… my case is already falling apart and I haven't even made one yet…_

"Detective Gumshoe, if you will," Gamma motioned for the witness to continue.

"The victim had been shot in the chest and died instantly, so there was nothing we could do for him when we arrived-"

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

"Speaking of the victim… has an autopsy report been prepared?"

Gumshoe nodded, "Of course! Here you go, pal!"

Gumshoe presented the victim's autopsy report to the court.

"Naturally," Gamma replied, smirking, "The autopsy confirms what the photo of the crime scene already told us. The victim died of a gunshot wound to the chest. The bullet entered his heart and he died instantly."

 **-Renchez's Autopsy added to Court Record-**

The judge clacked his gavel down and nodded.

"That's enough. I believe we have established for the court a firm grasp of the events that transpired."

"Coincidentally," Gamma replied, "It was mentioned that the victim was shot and killed. I believe the next step is establishing the facts surrounding the murder weapon."

The judge nodded, "Indeed. Witness, I assume you are prepared to testify about the weapon, correct?"

Gumshoe nodded smugly.

"Sure thing, Your Honor!"

 **Witness Testimony**

 _\- The Murder Weapon -_

"You can see it in the crime scene photo, pal! The defendant's holding a gun in her hand! The gun was tested for fingerprints, but the only set found belongs to the defendant! She went and shot the victim! A single shot right in the heart! The bullet taken from the victim's body was examined, and it was definitely fired from the defendant's gun, pal!"

 _\- End Testimony -_

The judge nodded, "Hmm… well, I can't say this looks very good for the defendant. Very well. Mr. Justice, your cross-examination, if you will."

Apollo nodded.

 _I'm not sure if I have anything against him yet, I just need to press him for more details for the time being!_

 **Cross-Examination**

 _\- The Murder Weapon -_

"You can see it in the crime scene photo, pal! The defendant's holding a gun in her hands-"

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

Apollo frowned at Gumshoe for a moment before proceeding, "Out of curiosity, where did the gun come from?"

Gumshoe chuckled to himself, once again as though he had been anticipating Apollo to ask such a question.

"The defendant's a detective, pal! All homicide detectives are issued sidearms for their protection! We've run the serial number through our system, and the gun definitely belongs to the defendant!"

 _Yikes! I didn't know Detective Skye had a gun! I guess it does make sense… but she doesn't seem like the kind of person to ever use one…_

"Coincidentally," Gamma began calmly, "I happen to have the gun right here."

Gamma presented a medium-sized revolver to the court and the judge nodded.

"The court accepts this gun into evidence."

 **-Ema's Gun added to Court Record-**

Apollo took time to examine the gun and noticed something odd. Not one, but two of the gun's chambers were empty, meaning the gun had been fired not once, but twice.

 _I should keep note of that… it might come in handy later._

The judge clacked his gavel to get things back on track.

"Witness, please continue with your testimony."

Gumshoe nodded, chuckling to himself.

"The gun was tested for fingerprints, but the only set found belongs to the defendant-"

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

Apollo slammed his fists down on the bench in front of him.

"The gun belonged to the Detective Skye! Her fingerprints on the weapon aren't unusual!"

Gamma shook his head, a confident smirk plastered across his face.

"Mr. Justice… allow me to remind you that I'm supposed to be the rookie here."

Apollo was taken aback by Gamma's comment.

"W-what!?"

"Allow me to remind you that _only_ Ema's fingerprints were found on the gun! Moreover, you can see it right here in the photo…"

Gamma slammed the back of his fist down on the bench again, then raised his arm and pointed aggressively at Apollo.

"Ema was found at the scene of the crime, holding the weapon in her hand!"

Apollo flinched and recoiled at the fierce accusation.

"W-well, yeah, but…"

"Not only that," Gamma continued, "but gunpowder residue was found on Ema's hand! She's definitely the one who fired the gun!"

"W-WWWHHHHAAAAATTTTTTT!?"

Apollo doubled back and was left reeling over the defense's bench, sweating bullets. Such substantial evidence against Ema definitely didn't help Apollo make her case, and the fact that he had a single shard of glass to work with definitely didn't help.

Had Apollo been a lesser defense attorney, he might have turned to Ema and asked if she was sure she didn't do it, but Apollo had faith in his client. He truly believed Ema was innocent, he just needed to prove it.

The judge clacked his gavel and shook his head.

"The longer these proceedings last, the guiltier the defendant seems. However, I believe there are still some points that need to be cleared up before I can bring this trial to a close. Witness, please continue.

"Yes sir!"

Gumshoe thought for a moment before picking up where he had left off before.

"She went and shot the victim! A single shot right in the heart!-"

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

"There's still a possibility someone else killed the victim!"

 **"** **OBJECTION!"**

Gamma smiled, shaking his head.

"That, my friend, is for you to try to prove… and allow me to say you're not doing a very good job of it so far!"

The judge clacked his gavel angrily and glared at Gamma.

"Prosecutor Gamma, allow me to remind you that _I_ am the judge of this courtroom!"

Gamma straightened his expression and leaned on the bench in silence.

"….."

The judge hesitated a bit before reluctantly nodding.

"T-that being said, the prosecution is correct. You're not doing a very good job of convincing me that your client is innocent, Mr. Justice."

 _Oh great… looks like even though he's a rookie, the judge still favors him…_

"Um… may I continue?" Gumshoe asked, hesitantly.

"Ah, yes," the judge answered, nodding, "Please continue."

"The bullet taken from the victim's body was examined, and it was definitely fired from the defendant's gun, pal-"

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

"If the bullet has been analyzed, the defense requests that it be presented to the court as evidence!"

Gamma nodded, "As you wish, Mr. Justice, but keep in mind this bullet only hurts your case!"

Apollo nodded, "It may seem like it, but the bullet is still evidence!"

Gumshoe smiled, holding up a clear plastic bag with the bullet inside for the court to see.

"I have the bullet right here, pal! The report clearly states the bullet was fired from Detective Skye's gun!"

The judge nodded, "Very well, the court accepts this bullet into evidence."

 **-Bullet added to Court Record-**

The judge clacked his gavel, "Very well, please continue with the cross examination."

Apollo frowned.

 _I've gone through all his statements… maybe I should ask about_ that one thing _that's been bothering me…_

Gumshoe smiled, ready to repeat himself for the court.

"You can see it in the crime scene photo, pal! The defendant's holding a gun in her hand! The gun was tested for fingerprints, but the only set found belongs to the defendant! She went and shot the victim! A single shot right in the heart!-"

 **"** **OBJECTION!"**

"Detective Gumshoe, let me get this straight," Apollo began, holding up a sheet of paper with notes on it in one hand while holding his other hand behind his back, "You said that the victim was shot _once_ , correct?"

Gumshoe nodded, "Yeah, pal! One shot was all it took, she hit him square in the chest!"

Apollo nodded, "And, earlier you mentioned that you heard a _single_ gunshot from the evidence room. Am I correct so far?"

Gumshoe nodded, but then grew puzzled by the questions Apollo had asked him.

"Uh, where are you going with this, pal?"

Apollo slammed his fists down on the bench, "Detective, if things went as you say, then things just _don't add up!_ "

Gumshoe grew indignant and shouted back at Apollo, "What are you talking about, pal!?"

Apollo held up the gun for the court to see.

"This gun… there's something odd about it. Detective Gumshoe said he only heard one shot, and only one bullet was found at the scene of the crime, inside the victim's body… however, _two_ bullets have been fired from this gun."

Apollo slammed his fists down on the desk and pointed fiercely at Gamma, "When was this second bullet fired!?"

The judge nodded, "Why, that is a very good question. Does the prosecution have anything to say?"

Gamma was leaning against the desk with a hand in front of the mask on his face, a pained expression clear across his lips.

Apollo smirked, "It looks like your inexperience has caught up with you. If I were the prosecutor, the first thing I'd do is check the gun."

Gamma frowned, but then straightened up and smirked.

"Heh," he laughed smugly, his confidence returning instantly, "I may have been careless, but it doesn't matter much. After all… I believe you were the one who asked the question… _When_ was the bullet fired?"

 _Uh oh… I think I know where this is going…_

Gamma slammed the back of his fist down on the bench and pointed back at Apollo, "If the bullet was fired well before the incident, it bears no significance to this case!"

"A-ACKK!"

Apollo recoiled, not expecting Gamma to recover so quickly.

 _He… he's right… there's no way I can prove that bullet was fired at the scene…_

Gamma smiled, nodding successfully to himself.

The judge clacked his gavel, "I believe this case has more or less come to a close. While the matter of the second bullet does in fact leave some questions, there is substantial evidence to implicate the defendant for the murder of Allen Renchez."

Apollo looked up from the desk, his fists clenched and his hair spikes droopy from the trails of sweat dripping from his forehead.

 _Wh-what!? The judge is about to end the trial! This isn't good!"_

"Does the defense have any additional statements before I bring this trial to a close?"

Apollo sat sweating in his spot, hunched over the defendant's bench.

 _I have to say something now… but… but I can't! I don't have anything! There's nothing there! The crime scene was too clean! If only I had been able to investigate before the team got there!_

"I uh… I have… an objection!?"

The judge shook his head.

"Mr. Justice, that sounded more like a question than an objection. If you don't have anything else to add, I believe it is time for me to call my verdict."

Apollo slammed his fists down on the desk, "Wait, Your Honor… I… I have…"

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

At the sudden outburst, the judge's eyes widened and he looked around the courtroom. Apollo, too, was equally surprised by the shout, but once he looked across the courtroom, he realized that Gamma had once again slammed the bench in front of him and was now prepared to say something.

"It's not in my nature to leave things so half-baked, Your Honor," Gamma replied.

"This is a court of law, not a bakery! I ask that refrain from baking anything at all!" the judge replied, indignant.

Gamma shook his head, not the slightest bit phased by the almost unbelievable misunderstanding on the judge's part.

"It was an expression. I mean to say, there's still one major question the prosecution has left to answer for the court before I'll let this case close."

The judge shook his head, "Prosecutor Gamma… you do realize that I am prepared to hand down a verdict in your favor, correct?"

Gamma nodded, "Oh, I understand completely… but if I leave things like this, I'm sure Mr. Justice over there will raise an objection sooner or later."

Apollo looked up at Gamma in confusion, not entirely sure what was going on in that masked prosecutor's head.

"In fact," Gamma replied, "I'll allow the defense to take this one. Wasn't there something bothering you about the whole incident, Mr. Justice?"

 _Something… bothering me… Ah! Now that he mentions it, there was something I was curious about… but why is he helping me like this!?_

The judge clacked his gavel, "Well, is it true, Mr. Justice? Is there something about the case so far that's bothering you?"

Apollo nodded, "Yes, Your Honor, the thing that's been bothering me about the case is…"

Apollo paused to gather his thoughts, and after a brief moment he arrived at his answer.

"There was something odd about the crime scene photo, something I noticed from the moment I saw it," Apollo began, "In this photo… the defendant's been _knocked unconscious_."

Apollo slammed his fists down on the desk and pointed at Gamma.

"That seems rather strange for someone who allegedly committed murder, wouldn't you say?"

The judge's eyes widened, "Ah yes! That was rather curious! To be honest, I was bothered by that too."

 _Yeah right… you were about ready to end the trial a few minutes ago…_

Gamma nodded, "Naturally, the prosecution noticed this as well. I have formulated my own theory as to what transpired in that room on the day of the incident, but I feel that witness testimony might be more effective."

The judge's eyes widened, "So, is the prosecution prepared to call another witness?"

Gamma nodded.

The judge nodded and turned to the gallery, which had grown restless at the thought of the end of the trial. Murmurs of discussion and whispers of gossip could be heard faintly, and the judge himself had realized how long the proceedings had gone lasted.

"Very well. The court will take a ten minute recess, after which we will hear the prosecution's answer to this quite puzzling question."

The judge brought his gavel down on the bench with a loud clack and almost instantly, the gallery began to disperse and make their way out of the coutroom.

Apollo also took a step back from the bench, simply relieved that the Judge had decided to prolong the trial at all. He truly believed in Ema's innocence, and couldn't imagine how terrible it would be if he failed his job and got her a guilty verdict, but he just didn't have enough to go on.

 _There's a lot of mysteries still surrounding this case… I just need to hope that, in due time, these mysteries will clear themselves up._

Apollo began making his way out of the courtroom himself when he turned back to see Gamma standing silently at the prosecution's bench, still as a statue and head raised slightly upwards as though he were in thought. There were a lot of questions Apollo had, both about this case and about that man. Wright seemed to be rather interested in the new prosecutor himself, and although Apollo couldn't make him out, he knew that somewhere amongst the gallery, his boss was watching the trial.

 _At any rate,_ Apollo thought to himself, watching Gamma turn and head out the door towards the prosecutor's lobby, _this case is far from over._

 ** _To Be Continued..._**

* * *

 **AN: There we go, the first "trial" chapter. I try to make the trial much more like the games, so the witness's repeat themselves with cross examinations and everything. I also intend to write in other game elements, so if it gets a bit strange or seems out of place for a story, just try to look at it like being an actual in-game case. I hope I captured the essence of the games well enough, and I hope this segment of the trial was interesting to read. I hoped you enjoyed, and reviews are always appreciated.**


	5. Trial Day 1 (Pt 2)

_**-Chapter 4-**_

 **December 18, 10:56 PM**

 **District Court**

 **Defendant Lobby No. 2**

"I'm sorry, Detective Skye," Apollo looked down, disheartened, "I nearly let you down in there…"

Relax," Ema grinned, crossing her arms and tilting her head up confidently, "You're Wright's protégé, right? I've seen first-hand how Wright's trials play out. Things may seem bad, but in the end he always pulls through. I've seen you do it too, you know?"

Apollo looked over at Ema and frowned. Earlier this morning, Ema had been in such a grumpy mood that she was almost unapproachable, but now it seemed that she was almost excited, despite the fact that her situation hadn't gotten any better.

Apollo was about to ask Ema about this out-of-place change of character, when suddenly an iconic, loud crunching brought his attention to Ema's hand and the recently opened bag of snackoos that sat in it.

 _Oh… so she was just going through snackoo withdrawal…_ Apollo thought dryly.

"W-where did you get those?" Apollo asked. He hadn't seen her with them earlier, and he was positive the detention center wouldn't let her sneak snackoos in at all, let alone bring them with her to court.

"Wright snuck them in for me," Ema noted, cheeks puffed full with the crunchy snacks, "He's here watching the trial, you know."

Apollo nodded, "Yeah, he mentioned something about that when we talked about the case last night."

After Apollo responded, the two fell into a silence that Apollo would've otherwise described as comfortable if it weren't for the sound of Ema loudly munching on her snackoos.

Apollo didn't have much to discuss with Ema anyway. She hadn't remembered a thing from the day before, regarding the incident that left her unconscious in the evidence room. He supposed he could come up with something to talk about other than the case at hand, but he wanted to stay focused on what was important and he didn't think Ema would take well to small talk considering the situation.

"You know," Ema replied suddenly, breaking the silence with something other than her loud munching this time, "There's… something odd about that Gamma guy. He seems… familiar, somehow."

Apollo looked over at Ema curiously. There it was again. Everyone seemed unnaturally interested in the new prosecutor for some reason. Even the judge mentioned something about recognizing his mask.

It had to be something with the mask. That's what Wright had mentioned before and what the judge had taken note of. In fact, come to think of it, Gamma had mentioned something about the mask having appeared in the courtroom before. Perhaps there was something about the mask in Wright' old case files, and Apollo was just forgetting about it.

Apollo figured Ema was also talking about the mask, but then she spoke up again.

"It's kind of like," Ema paused, trying to find the words to describe her feelings, "It's kind of like I'm supposed to recognize him, but I can't quite figure out who he is with that strange mask on…"

That wasn't what Apollo had expected at all.

"W-wait," Apollo furrowed his brow, placing a finger on his forehead, "You _don't_ recognize that mask?"

Ema's eyes widened as Apollo's question caught her off guard.

"N-no… why? Am… am I supposed to?"

Apollo shook his head, "No, at least, not that I know of. But everyone else seems interested in Gamma because of that mask. Even Wright brought it up yesterday. You're the first person I've heard say Gamma _himself_ was familiar."

Ema fiddled with her hair as she frowned slightly, as though she were mulling over what Apollo had told her in her head.

"Well, it's just an impression. I don't actually know him," Ema replied finally, "I'd probably remember someone with a strange name like 'Gamma' if I knew them."

Apollo frowned. As confusing as Ema's case had been so far, Apollo was even more perplexed by the rookie prosecutor who stood against him in the courtroom.

Before Apollo could mull over things any more, the bailiff entered the room and called out to Apollo.

"The recess is nearly over, court is about to reconvene."

Apollo nodded and turned to Ema.

"I can't promise I can get to the bottom of this in one day, but I definitely won't let them pronounce you guilty!"

Ema nodded silently and the two made their way out of the defendant lobby and through the courthouse, ready for the next phase of this courtroom battle.

* * *

 **December 18, 11:06 PM**

 **District Court**

 **Courtroom No. 4**

The judge clacked his gavel down upon the bench to signal the end of the recess he had issued and looked across the court as he spoke.

"This trial seems rather straightforward, and the guilt of the defendant seems rather certain, yet there are still a few questions that need to be answered. Why was the defendant found unconscious at the scene of the crime? What exactly happened in that room at the moment of the shooting? These are both questions I hope the prosecution can answer."

"Your Honor, I believe the next witness will provide an acceptable explanation about the events that took place in the room at the time of the shooting," Gamma replied, grinning, "After all, he was one of the first people on the scene."

The judge nodded, "Very well, the prosecution may call its next witness."

Gamma nodded, "The prosecution calls Victor Darke to the stand!"

Apollo felt his shoulders slump at the name.

 _Why did it have to be him!?_

A few moments later, the cocky visage of the scientist known as Victor Darke was standing at the witness stand, arms crossed smugly.

Gamma looked unfazed by his appearance, but Apollo thought something was odd with the way he was standing. Apollo might've been imagining it, but he seemed a little more stiff than usual.

"Witness, state your name and profession."

Victor smirked confidently and placed a hand on his hip, tilting his head to the side and flashing the court a toothy grin.

"Names Victor Darke. You might not have heard of me before, but you've definitely seen my work. I'm the number one forensic scientist down at the precinct."

The judge's eyes widened, "The… number one?"

Victor continued to grin, "That's right, gramps. Number one. The guy in first place. The gold medal finalist. I carry the shoulders of our forensics department. Heh, that ballistics test? That was my work. Took me no more than five minutes from the moment I got the bullet."

Gamma slammed the desk, "If you're done bragging, witness, please testify to the court about the day of the murder. Specifically, how the crime scene was found, and what you believe occurred."

"Heh, fine, I think the court recognizes my importance by now anyway."

The judge clacked his gavel, "Alright, please begin your testimony."

 **Witness Testimony**

 _\- The Defendant and the Victim -_

"When I arrived at the scene, it was a pretty nasty sight. The victim was lying dead on the floor of the evidence room with a large pool of blood around him. The defendant was lying nearby, unconscious and holding the gun in her hands. At first it seems weird, but it's obvious what happened. With the last of his strength, Allen Renchez fought back and knocked the defendant out cold. Pretty hardcore if you ask me."

 _\- End Testimony -_

The judge nodded, "I see. So you believe the victim fought back against the defendant, which is why she was found unconscious. Very well. Mr. Justice, you may begin your cross examination."

 _For someone who brags so much, he certainly left a big, gaping hole in his testimony. This one's almost too easy…_

Apollo looked over at Gamma, who was staring across the courtroom with a blank expression.

 _I'll worry about Gamma later… It's time for my cross-examination. Here comes Justice!_

 **Cross-Examination**

 _\- The Defendant and the Victim -_

"When I arrived at the scene, it was a pretty nasty sight. The victim was lying dead on the floor of the evidence room with a large pool of blood around him. The defendant was lying nearby, unconscious and holding the gun in her hands. At first it seems weird, but it's obvious what happened. With the last of his strength, Allen Renchez fought back and knocked the defendant out cold. Pretty hardcore if you ask me-"

 **"** **OBJECTION!"**

Apollo slammed his fists down on the table.

"There's a rather large contradiction in your testimony just now, Mr. Darke."

Victor tilted his head and raised an eyebrow cockily at Apollo.

"Really now, Mr. Justice?"

Apollo nodded, "You said that Allen Renchez _fought back_ after being shot at, which is why Detective Skye was found unconscious at the scene… but that's _impossible_!"

"Impossible!?" Victor asked, indignant, "You'll be surprised what even the most pathetic weaklings are capable of in a pinch."

Apollo shook his head and grinned confidently, "Take a look at the victim's autopsy report. It says right here that the bullet entered Mr. Renchez's heart and he _died instantly_. It's not that I don't believe the victim didn't have the physical strength to knock the defendant unconscious…"

Apollo paused, slamming his fists down on the bench then pointing directly at Victor.

"It's that the victim couldn't have done _anything_ after he was attacked! He died immediately!"

Victor reeled back in surprise and the small cat bell attached to his choker jingled comically; a rather stark contrast from his serious, always full-of-himself personality.

"W-well, maybe he knocked her out before he was shot!"

"If he had knocked Ema out before he was shot, then how do you suppose she shot him in the first place!"

Apollo slammed both his fists on the table aggressively.

"The defendant was found unconscious at the scene, meaning she had been knocked out at some point during the incident! However, she couldn't have been knocked out after the victim was shot, nor could she have shot anyone had she been knocked out beforehand! That proves that there was someone else in the evidence room on that day!"

At Apollo's forceful conclusion, the gallery erupted into commotion, murmurs and discussion creating a cacophony of voices throughout the courtroom. The judge had to clack his gavel quite extensively to get them to settle down, but once he did, an unusually calm silence settled over the entire courtroom.

Apollo smirked confidently and turned his attention towards Gamma, only to look on in surprise once he realized that Gamma didn't even seem the least bit phased by what he had just declared. In fact, Gamma had the beginnings of a confident grin plastered across his face.

"Heh," Gamma laughed, "Answer me this, Mr. Justice… who's to say that Ema was knocked unconscious at all?"

"What are you talking about!" Apollo asked, slamming the desk again and pointing at Gamma, "The defendant is clearly unconscious in the crime scene photo!"

"Ema was unconscious when the scene was discovered, that much is true," Gamma pointed out, "However, that isn't to say that her unconsciousness was a result of a physical assault. Consider this: Perhaps Ema was merely overcome with shock over the horrific act she had just carried out, and fainted on her own."

Gamma looked at Apollo as though he were expecting the defense attorney to reel back in surprise and start sweating bullets now that his argument had been blown to pieces with the masked prosecutors reasoning. Instead, Apollo looked on confidently as he crossed his arms.

"That… simply isn't possible," Apollo replied, grinning.

The judge clacked his gavel and looked at Apollo expectantly, "If you're going to make a claim like that, you better be prepared to back it up, Mr. Justice."

Apollo nodded, "Yeah, I know. The thing that shows it isn't possible for the Detective Skye to have simply fainted is this…"

 **"** **TAKE THAT!"**

The judge's eyes widened as Apollo presented the profile of Ema Skye herself to the courtroom.

"T-that's… the defendant!"

Apollo nodded, "While I was speaking with Detective Skye, she told me that she had a nasty bump on the back of her head. While my client can't recall anything from the morning of the murder, that's pretty solid evidence that she was struck by someone with the express intent of knocking her unconscious!"

 **"** **OBJECTION!"**

Gamma shook his head and frowned at Apollo, speaking in a tone that sounded filled with mock disappointment, "Mr. Justice, this is my first trial, but I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't go easy on me just for my sake."

Apollo glared at Gamma, "I'm… I'm not going easy on you!"

The judge shook his head, "I'd have to agree with Mr. Justice on this one. With such a hopeless case, I'm sure he's doing the best he can to try to counter your arguments."

Apollo slumped over once more, looking at the judge with an entirely unamused expression.

 _Why do I suddenly feel like I'm being patronized?_

Gamma raised his hand up to his mask and shook his head, "In this dark age, can 'facts' such as that be taken at face value? Fabricated evidence takes time to prepare, but simple word-of-mouth statements meant to garner sympathy for the defendant can be made up on the spot. You work under that legendary defense attorney, so I doubt that was your intention…"

Gamma pointed forcefully towards Apollo, "…but do you have any evidence to support your claim!? Was the defendant, Ema Skye, really struck over the head with anything?"

 **"** **OBJECTION!"**

Apollo slammed his fists down on the bench in front of him and pointed at Gamma angrily.

"If you want proof, why don't you take a look at the defendant's head yourself! She still has the bump where she was struck!"

 **"** **OBJECTION!"**

Gamma slammed his own desk with the back of his hand and grinned.

"Even if she has a bump _now…_ there's no way you can prove that she had that bump on the day of the murder! Perhaps she accidentally bumped her head against the cold walls of her holding cell!"

The judge nodded as he closed his eyes, mulling over Gamma's last statement.

"Yes, that's very true. There are times I bump my head against my bed's headboard on accident. It's times like those that I wish I had hair to cover up the bump that forms."

"A-Ack! No…. nooooo waaaay!"

Apollo reeled back in shock and felt his hair spikes droop down over his forehead. He _knew_ that Ema had an injury on the back of her head. She had showed it to him. Even still, he could not provide solid evidence that she even had the injury to begin with.

The judge pounded his gavel, shaking his head at the sweating lawyer behind the defense bench.

"It seems that this trial has come full circle. It does not appear that Mr. Justice has proof of the defendant's injury. As to whether or not the defendant merely fainted has yet to be established, I do not consider that a significant reason to prolong this trial further. I am now prepared to hand down my verdict."

The judge paused dramatically as Apollo sat, sweating bullets at the stand. He wanted to raise an objection, but he had truly run out of fuel this time.

 _I… I failed… I let you down, Detective Skye… and I failed Wright too…_

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

Apollo's head shot up at the sound of the voice.

The judge's eyes widened as he looked around the room, looking for the source of the shout.

Gamma merely sat at the bench, though he had one arm raised against his mask as he fiddled around with it.

Apollo turned off to his side to see Wright standing next to him, looking considerably cleaned up but still otherwise in street clothes. Rather than his normal outfit, the man was wearing a white t-shirt with a stylized Steel Samurai head printed across its chest and a pair of dark blue jeans, although he was still wearing his wool hat and had the locket strung around his neck. Wright himself had his hands casually shoved in his pockets and was grinning confidently, a smirk somewhat reminiscent of his glory days before he was disbarred.

"Prosecutor Gamma," Wright began, "I don't know how knowledgeable you are when it comes to dealing with the police department and the detention center… but I know for a fact that proof of Ema's injury exists!"

Apollo expected Gamma to react with surprise at Wright's bold statement, but instead the prosecutor seemed as calm as ever, with a blank expression plastered across his face.

"So," Gamma began calmly, "You've finally stopped hiding in the gallery…. Wright."

Wright's expression darkened and he glared directly at Gamma, forgetting the trial for the time being.

"That mask… Just who are you, exactly?"

Gamma turned his head slightly to meet Wright's gaze directly and gave the faintest of smiles.

"From what I've heard about you… you already know the answer to that question."

Gamma fiddled with his mask again and looked at the judge, who seemed rather lost now that such a calm, serious atmosphere had settled over the courtroom. Apollo was also slightly unnerved by how calm the two were conversing, despite being on opposite sides of the courtroom in the middle of a heated trial.

"Regardless," Gamma replied, turning his attention back to the trial at hand, "You mentioned proof. You wouldn't happen to have this proof, would you?"

Wright shook his head, his cocky grin coming back almost immediately.

"Sorry, Prosecutor Gamma," Wright replied, "but I'm not the one who's supposed to have this proof, you are."

Wright took his hands out of his pockets and placed them on his hips smugly.

"When a suspect is arrested while unconscious or otherwise injured, they are automatically given a rudimentary medical examination. The results of this examination are recorded, regardless of the findings."

Wright raised his arm slowly and purposefully before pointing aggressively at Gamma.

"As the prosecutor for this case, you should have received this report yourself!"

For the first time, Gamma recoiled from the shock of the pointed accusation directed at him, his mask letting off a surge of sparks as his whole body reeled backwards, leaving him leaning against the desk to recover. Small sparks continued to dance their way across his mask, causing him to flinch and clench his teeth.

"I… I must've overlooked the report…" Gamma admitted calmly, though his expression was still anything but. Wright continued to smirk confidently at him.

Gamma shuffled the papers on his desk until he found an enclosed envelope with Ema's medical examination report in it and skimmed through it briefly before holding it up.

"I've found it, and as the defense suggests, as early as the moment Ema was detained, there were signs of blunt force trauma to the back of the cranium. She definitely took a blow hard enough to force her into a state of unconsciousness."

The judge nodded, "The court accepts this into evidence,"

 **-Ema's Medical Report added to Court Record-**

The judge clacked his gavel, "Well then, Prosecutor Gamma. It definitely seems like you've made a grave error regarding the defendant's cause of unconsciousness at the scene of the crime, and as the defense suggests, it's highly unlikely that the victim is the one who knocked Ms. Skye unconscious. All things considered, I believe this raises considerable doubt regarding the defendant's guilt."

Apollo grinned and clenched his fists in victory. The trial would be allowed to continue another day, and maybe Apollo could scrounge up more info and evidence to make a stronger case for Ema.

 _Yes! I'm glad I was able to hold out this far!_

"It's too early to be celebrating, Apollo," Wright replied, frowning as he glanced across the courtroom, "Look at Gamma's expression."

Apollo followed Wright's eyes across the court and found that Gamma was smirking successfully with his arms crossed.

"I'm sorry, Your Honor," Gamma replied, "but I'm not quite done yet. After all, what does this medical report prove, exactly?"

Apollo slammed his fists down on the bench, "It proves that Detective Skye was knocked unconscious!"

Gamma frowned and shook his head, "Sorry, but it proves nothing of the sort. All it proves is that the defendant _received a blow to the back of the head._ Now, take a good look at the crime scene photo."

"The… the photo?" the judge asked, eyes wide in confusion.

Gamma nodded, "Note the position of the defendant. She's lying _face-up._ Isn't it possible that she merely hit her head when she fell down after fainting from the shock of committing murder?"

Gamma emphasized his last statement with an aggressive point, and Apollo recoiled slightly.

"See," Wright replied, "I don't think today's trial will end until we present _that_ piece of evidence."

"W-what do you mean? How will that help end the trial?" Apollo asked, placing his finger on his forehead in thought.

Wright laughed, "When you're as experienced with these sorts of things, you get an eye for knowing when a piece of evidence is important."

 _That… that didn't answer my question at all!_

"Hmm…" the judge nodded, "Yes, that is possible, but-"

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

The judge, not expecting to get cut off, opened his eyes wide in surprise.

Apollo and Wright both looked at each other, then around the room to locate the source of the call.

Gamma himself also seemed rather surprised until he looked over at the witness stand. After realizing who had called out, Gamma crossed his arms and put on a blank expression.

Victor Darke stood on the witness stand looking as smug and cocky as ever, smiling sideways and tilting his head to the side in a condescending manner.

"Since the prosecutor seems a bit slow on the uptake, I'll help him fill in the blanks with testimony, of course."

 **"** **OBJECTION!"**

Gamma slammed the desk in front of him angrily.

"I object to my witness insulting my intelligence in court!"

Victor smirked wider on the witness stand, "I wouldn't have to insult you if you weren't such a bumbling greenhorn! I've seen puppies prosecute better than you!"

The judge clacked his gavel, "Objection sustained. Witness, please stop insulting Prosecutor Gamma."

"Tch," Victor scoffed, crossing his arms, "He deserves every bit of it!"

Apollo slumped his shoulders and looked over at Wright, noting dryly, "I've heard of prosecutors badgering witnesses, but a witness who badgers prosecutors!? Who does this guy think he is?"

Wright laughed, "Careful Apollo, or he'll start badgering you next…"

The judge clacked his gavel once more, "At any rate, it seems like the witness has something else to say. Witness, please testify to the court."

 **Witness Testimony**

 _\- Ema's Injury -_

"Heh, it's like cyber-face over there said, the detective must've fainted. She did just shoot someone, after all. Yeah, she fainted and when she fell she hit her head on the ground. It's the most logical explanation. She was knocked out on purpose? Give me a break! If someone really knocked her out, what could they have used on the spot like that?"

\- End Testimony -

"Hmm," the judge nodded, taking in everything that had just been said, "Yes, that does seem to make sense. Mr. Justice, are you ready for the cross-examination?"

Apollo nodded, "Of course, Your Honor."

 **Cross-Examination**

\- Ema's Injury -

"Heh, it's like cyber-face over there said, the detective must've fainted. She did just shoot someone, after all. Yeah, she fainted and when she fell she hit her head on the ground. It's the most logical explanation. She was knocked out on purpose, give me a break! If someone really knocked her out, what could they have used on the spot like that?-"

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

"Out of curiosity, there was something about the way you phrased that that seems… odd…" Apollo noted.

Victor cocked his head to the side, "What are you talking about?"

Apollo frowned, "Well, you asked, 'what could they have used on the spot like that?', but that's an odd question to ask, don't you think? I mean, why couldn't the real killer have knocked her out with something they had prepared earlier?"

Gamma stepped in, smirking, "Heh, sorry, Mr. Justice, but I think I know where Victor was going with his line of reasoning…"

Victor scoffed and cast Gamma a condescending look, "It's about time someone did."

Gamma chose to ignore Darke's comment and shook his head, "If this hypothetical "real killer" had been prepared with something heavy enough to knock out Ema with, why didn't they use that to murder Renchez? After all, they used the defendant's gun to commit the crime, which would only make sense if they were ill-prepared for the murder otherwise… not to mention that a gun would be riskier to use due to the sound of the gunshot."

Apollo slumped his shoulders.

"Ah… I didn't think of that."

Realizing he had gone over Victor's entire testimony, Apollo frowned.

"Victor's being rather repetitive, I don't know if any of my evidence contradicts his statements…"

Wright smiled, "Victor seems like the kind of guy who always thinks two steps ahead of everyone… but this might work to our advantage. I'm sure if you press him, he'll say something that doesn't quite fit."

Apollo nodded, focusing intently on Victor as he began to speak again.

"Heh, it's like cyber-face over there said, the detective must've fainted. She did just shoot someone, after all. Yeah, she fainted and when she fell she hit her head on the ground. It's the most logical explanation-"

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

"What do you mean by 'most logical explanation'?"

Victor scoffed, crossing his arms smugly, "Don't you get it? It's the explanation that makes the most sense. The only explanation that answers all the questions perfectly."

 _I know what what you meant I just… argh… Nevermind…_

Wright piped in at this point.

"Hold on, Apollo… didn't Victor mention something about this earlier?"

Apollo's eyes lit up and he nodded.

"Wait, I think I should bring that point up!"

Apollo turned his attention to the forensic scientist and slammed his hands down on the bench in front of him.

"Wait, earlier you mentioned that the reasoning behind your theory was because any theoretical third party would have been unprepared to kill, and therefore wouldn't have had anything to strike the defendant over the head with, correct?"

"That's the gist of it, yeah," Victor smirked, "is there something wrong with that?"

 _Hmm…._ Apollo thought to himself, _Is there something wrong with Victor's theory?_

"Actually," Apollo opened his eyes, "There is something rather flawed with that line of reasoning!"

Victor grew angry and crossed his arms indignantly, "I-impossible… my logic is flawless!"

Apollo shook his head, "I'm sorry, Victor, but your logic falls apart if…"

Apollo paused to mull over what he was going to say next, then nodded to himself once he confirmed how he was going to approach this.

"If I were to prove there was something in that room that the real killer could have used to knock out Detective Skye, your line of reasoning falls apart!"

Victor flinched again, his bell jingling as he reeled back and raised his arms in front of him.

"W-what!? You can't actually prove that, right!? That's why you said 'if' just now… right!?"

The judge shook his head, "Mr. Justice, I'm afraid hypotheticals aren't enough to discredit a witness's testimony. Do you have proof that something else in the room could be used to strike Detective Skye over the head?"

Apollo nodded, "Of course I have evidence, Your Honor!"

This time, Gamma reeled back in surprise, with more of those sparks flying off his mask.

The judge clacked his gavel.

"If you have evidence, please present it to the court."

Apollo nodded and began looking through the Court Record.

 _Let's see… the evidence that proves there was something else that could be used as a murder weapon is…_

 **"** **TAKE THAT!"**

"Why, this is a lovely collection of trophies… are these yours?" the judge asked as Apollo pulled up an image of the shelf of trophies in the evidence room.

"N-no, they're not mine, Your Honor," Apollo replied, trying to shrug off that non-sequitur as best as possible, "This is a shelf of trophies stored in the evidence room where the murder occurred."

Gamma slammed the back of his fist against the prosecutor's bench and shook his head, "So? Are you suggesting that's a poor place to store trophies?"

Apollo once again shook his head.

"No, but if you can't see where I'm going with this then you might need to check your eyes."

Gamma grumbled something incoherent at Apollo, but the red-clad defense attorney kept rolling with his argument.

"This shelf alone proves that there were plenty of items that the real killer could have used to bludgeon my unsuspecting client… however, note that there is one trophy missing!"

The judge's eyes widened, "Ah! You're right! There does appear to be space for a single trophy on that shelf!"

Apollo nodded and smirked before slamming his fists down onto the bench forcefully, "The fact that a trophy was missing from the crime scene… points to that trophy having been used to strike Detective Skye over the head!"

Gamma stood silently in shock and surprise as he let that information sink in, then…

"W-WWWHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTTT!?"

Sparks danced agross Gamma's mask as he leaned against the prosecutor's bench, trying to recover… suddenly, he raised his hand up and slammed the desk before pulling himself upright.

"Heh, you almost had me there, Mr. Justice," Gamma replied, "Indeed, shards of glass were found at the crime scene, and they do appear to be from some sort of glass trophy… however… no blood was found on any of the glass shards! If the defendant had truly been knocked out…"

Gamma slammed the desk again, then threw his pointer finger out to point at the defense bench.

"There should definitely have been blood on at least one of the shards!"

Wright smirked, "There, now do you see, Apollo. I told you… that glass shard is key to this trial, at least, for now."

Apollo smirked.

"Prosecutor Gamma, have a look at this piece of evidence!"

 **"** **TAKE THAT!"**

"A…. A GLASS SHARD!"

Gamma shouted in surprise, leaning over the bench as though he were in physical pain, then…

"There… there's blood on this glass shard!" the judge exclaimed.

Wright smirked, "You know what to do, Apollo."

Apollo nodded, then pointed ferociously at the prosecution, "If the blood on this glass shard belongs to Detective Skye, then that proves that the trophy was used to knock her unconscious… meaning there had to be a third party at the crime scene at the time of the murder!"

The judge clacked his gavel, "Bailiff! Take this shard of glass down to forensics at once… we must establish whether or not this bloodstain belongs to the defendant or not!"

Victor, from the witness stand, smirked, "Didn't I already tell you, Gramps, I _am_ forensics. Just give the glass shard to me, I'll take it right now and have it analyzed in less than five minutes!"

The judge's eyes widened, "Can you really do it that quickly?"

Victor nodded, "Quickly? I was being generous. My personal record is three minutes and twenty four seconds."

"Very well," the judge replied, "Witness, I permit you to analyze the blood on this shard of glass immediately!"

The courtroom was almost entirely silent while Victor worked. He had taken an on-the-spot blood sample from Ema Skye and was using a special device he seemed to have been carrying around to analyze both her blood and the blood from the shard of glass. It was a crude, test that would only be able to determine if it was Ema's or not, but that was all it really needed to do anyway.

After four minutes, Victor tapped the screen of the device and it printed out a small report.

"According to my analysis… the blood from the glass… is a ninty-five percent similarity between the blood taken from the glass shard and the defendant's blood. In other words, it's a match."

The judge's eyes widened.

Apollo stood, looking successful and confident after what he could only describe as the longest 4 minutes of his career as a defense attorney.

Wright sat with his hands in his pockets, looking rather smug himself but with a relaxed air about him.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the courtroom…

"NNOOOO WWWWAAAAAYYYYY!" Gamma's mask began sparking like crazy, then exploded in his face, leaving the prosecutor leaned hard against the desk, his mask both smoking from the explosion and letting off stray sparks here and there.

As though Gamma's outburst were the trigger to some sort of chain reaction, the gallery went up into a total uproar. The tides of the trial having been turned. The gallery wasn't even murmuring anymore, they were outright shouting about the amazing comeback by the defense.

"At first I thought she was guilty, but now I'm not sure…"

"Did you hear that… there might've been a third person at the crime scene…"

"That prosecutor didn't stand a chance! Not against Wright's apprentice!"

The judge had to clack his gavel three times, nearly yelling at the top of his lungs, "ORDER! ORDER! ORDER IN THE COURT!"

Once the crowd finally settled down, the judge looked at both the defense and prosecution.

Apollo and Wright were standing side by side, smirking confidently now that they had blown a hole in one of the major assumptions of the prosecution's case.

Gamma was still leaned over the prosecutor's bench, though the smoke from his mask had settled down, leaving only the occasional spark dancing across the metal surface.

"Well, what seemed like a rather open and shut case turned out to be something a bit more complex than I imagined. The defense has proven the likelihood of a third party at the crime scene at the time of the murder. As such, I do not believe I have enough information to pass a verdict at this time. I expect both the prosecution and the defense to look further into this matter to prepare for tomorrow's trial."

The judge was about to clack his gavel when someone burst through the courtroom doors.

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

"Please wait, Your Honor!"

Everyone in the courtroom turned towards the witness stand as the new person rushed in and roughly shoved Victor Darke out of the way.

Apollo's shoulders slumped immediately when he saw who it was.

There, standing on the witness stand and clutching his messenger bag like his life depended on it was Derek Fanne.

The judge's eyes widened briefly before he narrowed them and shook his head.

"I was just about to prolong the trial, I don't appreciate being interrupted like this."

"Oh…" Derek replied dejectedly, as though he wanted to be the one to save the trial, "A-anyway! I have a report from the police department, Mr. Gamma! It's absolutely urgent! They told me to interrupt the trial if I had to, because you really need to hear this!"

Gamma slammed the back of his fist down on the prosecutor's bench, "Did they really tell you to interrupt the trial?"

"Well," Derek looked to the side as though it would help him avoid the question, "they definitely said to make sure you read this right away… and since you're still in trial, I'd have to interrupt it anyway, so…"

Gamma slammed his fist down on the table yet again, "Enough. What's the report about?"

"Here it is, sir!" Derek handed Gamma the report, then turned to flash Ema a smile, "Anyway, sorry for interrupting the trial… please don't hold me in contempt of court!"

The judge shook his head, "Honestly, I think after this that would be the most appropriate action-"

 **"** **OBJECTION!"**

Gamma had just shouted, but he was doubled over the bench with his mask sparking again, enough so that it looked as though Gamma was in physical pain.

"I… I object… I object to this report! This is insane! Are you kidding me!? Is this some kind of joke!?"

It was the angriest and most emotional Apollo had seen Gamma throughout the entire trial, which served to really catch the red-clad attorney off guard.

Derek shrunk in his own clothes as though he were at fault for the contents of the report.

"W-what?" the judge's eyes widened, alarmed at Gamma's response to the report, "What does it say…"

Gamma paused, as though he were reading the report over again to make sure his eyes weren't playing horrible tricks on him, and then he picked himself up off the bench and stood calmly.

"It seems as though an entire file of evidence has gone missing from the evidence room… and seeing as Ema was not found with an evidence file on her person when he found her knocked out, we can only assume someone entered the evidence room at one point to steal an entire case file. The police have yet to determine if this is a related incident or not, but…"

The judge shook his head, "Either way, this new information does not change the situation very much as far at this trial is concerned. I expect the prosecution to further look into the matter of the stolen case file and determine whether or not this particular incident has anything to do with the murder in the evidence room. Gamma, you understand your responsibilities on this matter, correct?"

Gamma nodded, "Yes, Your Honor."

"In that case, without further delay," the judge began, "court is adjourned!"

The judge brought his gavel down one last time, bringing an end to the first day of what was turning out to be a rather bizarre trial.

 ** _To Be Continued..._**

* * *

 **AN: So, it's just now occurred to me that I forgot to add the obligatory "To Be Continued..." after the last chapter. Whoops. Now, I highly doubt anyone actually thought I was finished with the story after last chapter, but just in case I've added it retroactively (which probably means by the time you read this it's actually there now).**

 **Now, you may notice that some of Gamma's "animations" (or for those of you with less imagination, frequent actions) are similar to Godot's. Why? Well, I'll let you work that one out yourselves, but you might want to look back on _certain_ Ace Attorney character sprites. You may notice a _particular_ _pattern_ that will give you a hint of who exactly Gamma is.**

 **Perhaps I've said too much.**

 **Also, if you haven't noticed yet, the chapter titles now reference what part of the case the chapter is about, so you can navigate the story easier! Anyway, hope you've enjoyed the chapter, and always remember that reviews are appreciated.**


	6. Investigation Day 2 (Pt 1)

_**-Chapter 5-**_

 **December 18, 12:30 PM**

 **Wright Anything Agency**

"…."

"…."

Apollo and Wright had returned to the office as soon as the trial ended, trapped in an uncomfortable silence as though neither knew exactly how to progress from here.

To be honest, Apollo wasn't expecting such a large bomb to be dropped at the very end of the proceedings. Sure, he always knew there was a third person on the scene- There had to be, since he knew Ema was innocent-, but to think that the culprit may have stolen evidence files in addition to the murder.

 _Something doesn't add up here..._

To Apollo's surprise, however, it seemed that Wright was equally as baffled by this interesting turn of events. He hadn't spoken a word since he suggested they return to the agency, and even now he seemed troubled by something or other.

"….. Apollo," Wright finally spoke, catching the red-clad attorney off guard.

"H-huh?" Apollo immediately whirled around to face his mentor.

"Well, I think it's time to head over to the police department to see what we can find," Wright replied.

"W-wait! 'We'!? As in, you're coming with me?"

Wright nodded, "This case has taken a rather interesting turn. Besides, it's been a while since I've been out on an investigation."

Wright wasn't wrong when he said it had been a while. Even in the seven years that Wright had spent out of the courtrooms (though not necessarily out of courtroom affairs), he would often find himself wrapped up in some sort of investigation. Yet after Apollo had cleared his name of forged evidence and his "secret mission" had come to fruition, there was little reason to investigate himself, especially considering Apollo was more or less often well of enough on his own or with Trucy to help.

However, with Trucy at school Apollo would be investigating alone otherwise, and naturally Wright would want to help Ema in any way possible.

Yet, even beyond that, Apollo had a feeling Wright's reasons for joining the investigation went deeper than wanting to help Ema.

 _Why is Wright interested in Gamma? I could just ask him, but I doubt I'd get a straight answer…_

Realizing Wright was waiting for Apollo to say something, the younger defense attorney nodded in affirmation.

"Thanks. Alright. Let's head down to the station. There has to be something we looked over!"

* * *

 **December 18, 12:41 PM**

 **LA Police Department**

 **Criminal Affairs**

"Wow, it feels like it's been a while since I've been back here…"

Apollo turned back to find Wright, looking around the police department like a kid in the candy store. Apollo wasn't sure if Wright truly hadn't been to the station since his disbarment seven years ago, but he couldn't readily think of a reason for Wright to be there if he weren't actively investigating.

Thinking about it, this case had been the first time Apollo himself had gone to the police department during an investigation. He supposed that, even during an investigation, Wright would have needed a specific reason to go to the police station in the first place.

As Wright looked around, Apollo noticed a set of heavy footsteps making their way towards them alarmingly fast, growing louder and louder with every step until-

"Hey pal!"

Apollo whirled around in alarm to find Senior Detective Gumshoe standing in front of them, taking heavy breaths as he had seemingly rushed up to them incredibly quickly.

Wright didn't seem the least bit phased, and instead smiled.

"Hey, Detective Gumshoe. It's been a while since we've talked in person, huh?"

Gumshoe nodded.

"Mr. Edgeworth's been giving me updates on how you've been doing, but I haven't seen you since that trial three months ago cleared your name! I'm really happy for you, pal!"

Wright smiled, "Thanks."

 _Aaaand let's just ignore the defense attorney in that trial who helped clear Wright's name…_ Apollo thought dryly from the sidelines.

"So," Gumshoe smiled, "When are you going to retake the bar exam!?"

Wright's expression turned serious in an instant, and Apollo found himself frowning almost instinctively.

"Gumshoe… when did I ever say I was retaking the bar exam?"

"What!" Gumshoe exclaimed, "Of course you're retaking it! You're Phoenix Wright, pal!"

Wright let out a dry laugh and nodded, "I suppose it's what I'm known for… but I'm not quite ready yet."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Gumshoe asked, furrowing his brow and looking at the ceiling as if trying to work out exactly what Wright meant.

"Gumshoe," Wright began, "The Chief Prosecutor doesn't typically stand in the court room. Do you think someone like Edgeworth would give that up simply to gain a higher position?"

Gumshoe shook his head, "Mr. Edgeworth has never been one to seek power. He only seeks the truth, pal! Wait… but if he didn't choose it for power…"

"Then there's a truth Edgeworth is seeking that can only be revealed through his new position as Chief Prosecutor," Wright finished, "Let's just say… there's something I have to do before I retake the bar exam, and it's for the same reason that Edgeworth wanted to become the Chief Prosecutor."

Gumshoe hung his head and pouted, "Why can't you two ever just come out and say what you mean, pal?"

Apollo agreed mentally, placing his finger on his forehead.

 _Yeah. It's like everything Wright says is a riddle wrapped up in a puzzle. Sometimes I wish he'd just tell me things straight up for a change._

Gumshoe scratched the back of his head and looked to the side, "Well, I suppose you guys are going to go investigate again. Anyway, see you later, pal!"

"Wait," Apollo called out, but the scruffy detective was already on his way out the door and to wherever it was he was going.

"W-wasn't he the lead detective in charge of this case? Where's he going?"

Wright shrugged.

"He might be running a report to Gamma or one of the other investigators. Anyway, let's check out the crime scene before anyone else stops us."

Apollo frowned, looking over to Wright before replying, "But wait… there's nothing at the crime scene, remember? The police cleaned everything up!"

Wright smiled confidently, "Then we just need to find something the police _didn't_. The speed at which police are expected to investigate means that they often cut corners and overlook minor details for sake of time. Maybe we'll find something important they simply missed."

Apollo nodded in understanding before the two made their way into forensics lab, ready to search for anything they missed.

* * *

 **December 18, 12:56 PM**

 **LA Police Department**

 **Forensics Lab**

Apollo was pleasantly surprised to find that the _ever-so-agreeable_ Victor Darke didn't seem to be anywhere in sight when he and Wright entered the labs. He wasn't particularly in the mood to deal with the raven-haired scientist, especially after the trial earlier that day. On top of that, Apollo didn't really see the point in talking to Victor until they had something else to go on.

Wright, on the other hand, had turned around and seemed to be scanning the room for something or someone. It was around the same time that both Wright and Apollo noticed a familiar face from the end of the trial.

Derek Fanne was standing near the corner of the room, looking rather timid and submissive hunched under the gaze of a woman Apollo had not seen here the other day.

The woman was wearing a long lab coat that looked far too big for her, with one end sliding completely off her shoulder and bunching up around her elbow. Underneath the labcoat she wore a very standard light blue blouse and a black dress skirt with dark leggings, complete with a pair of brown dress shoes. Her long blonde hair was tied up in a long ponytail that flowed down her back and stopped just above her waist, slightly wavy but otherwise straight.

The woman was standing cross-armed and was apparently in the middle of scolding Derek when Wright approached her. Noticing Wright and Apollo approaching, the woman frowned and finished up.

"If it happens again, Mr. Fanne, it'd be my responsibility to bring up this absolute blunder for the review board."

"S-sorry, Ms. Newton…"

Fanne walked away, looking rather defeated as he hung his shoulders. Whatever he had done this time, it must've been pretty bad.

On the other hand, the woman's expression immediately brightened as she turned over to Wright and Apollo.

"Now, you two are the here to investigate, I presume? Gamma told me you'd be coming. He told me to answer any questions you two may have. I don't know exactly what he's playing at, leaving the case so open to the defense, but he's the boss."

"Thank you for your cooperation," Wright replied, "Why don't you start by telling us who you are."

"My name is Marissa Newton," the woman spoke, "I'm the head of the forensics department here at the precinct. I'm in charge of things around here."

"And here you'd think that Darke guy was the one in charge, by the way he acts all the time…" Apollo replied dryly.

"Who, Victor?" Ms. Newton shook her head, "Nah. Victor's a protégé when it comes to forensics, but he's way too full of himself, and far too antisocial, to actually run this ship. Besides, I've been working here ages longer than he has. Now, is there anything else you'd like to ask me?"

"Yeah," Apollo piped in, "You're in charge around here, right? Then, you were here yesterday when the incident happened, I presume?"

Ms. Newton frowned a little, "Here at the precinct, yeah. Here in this lab, no. We were actually working in the older labs yesterday, so unfortunately I don't have a lot of the details. It was a total pain working with outdated equipment, but we didn't have much of a choice."

Wright looked over at Apollo, but Apollo had already caught it. He nodded to Wright.

 _Yeah, there's definitely something interesting about what Ms. Newton just said._

"Ms. Newton," Apollo continued, "You just mentioned that you weren't using the labs here yesterday. Why would that be?"

"Oh, there was another incident in the labs yesterday," Ms. Newton recalled, readjusting her labcoat to position it back over her shoulder, only for it to slide back off ineffectually. "Not like a murder incident, just an accident. One of the burners exploded when someone tried to light it. It didn't do much damage, but it was really loud. We had to get the rest of the burners checked, but it seemed like that was the only one that was faulty. That was… at 11:30 I believe, so about an hour before the incident. Still, we were stuck in the old lab all day yesterday. We still haven't moved everything back yet, either. It's such a pain!"

 _Hmm, so these labs were closed yesterday… that might be important later._

"You wouldn't happen to have a copy of that incident report, would you?" Wright asked.

"Of course. In fact, as the head of the forensics team, I was the one who filed it," Ms. Newton grinned, crossing her arms confidently, "Lemme guess, you want a copy?"

Wright nodded, "If it's not too much trouble."

Ms. Newton rummaged around in her labcoat before pulling out a thin, manilla envelope with a folded report inside.

"There you go. Not sure if that'll help any, though."

 **—** **Incident Report added to Court Record—**

"Thank you," Wright nodded.

"No prob! Like I said, Gamma asked me to be helpful!"

"Now, Apollo, you're the attorney on this case," Wright turned to the red-clad lawyer, "Is there anything else you think you should ask Ms. Newton?"

"Hmm…" Apollo frowned, furrowing his brow, "Actually, there was one thing that was bothering me."

"Ms. Newton," Apollo turned his attention to the blonde-haired scientist, "Earlier you were talking to Derek Fanne about something. Actually, you seemed rather unhappy about something he did. What was that about, if I may ask?"

"Oh, that?" Ms. Newton replied, her expression growing serious as she crossed her arms and frowned, grabbing the ends of her oversized labcoat, "When we went to investigate the missing case files, we discovered that the particular cabinet the files had disappeared from had not been locked properly. I'll give you three guesses as to who was responsible for that."

"Out of curiosity," Wright chimed in, "how long were the cabinets left unlocked?"

"Ah!" Apollo's eyes lit up, "Right! If the cabinet was only accessible around the time of the murder and after the investigation, then the culprit might be connected to the case!"

"That's just the thing," Ms. Newton sighed, "the cabinet was unlocked all night. There's no telling when the files were taken. We were trying to determine if the files had anything to do with the case as well, but honestly, with such a broad timeframe, and no more information, we can't call it either way."

 _Well, there goes that lead._ Apollo thought, slumping over a little as she sighed.

"I didn't think things would be that simple," Wright nodded, "Well, thanks for the information, Ms. Newton. Sorry to hold you up."

"Nah, it's cool!" Ms. Newton smiled, "The less time I have to spend watching the lab boys move stuff out of the old lab, the better. Well, I'll be off. If you need anything else from me, I'll be around."

The blonde-haired woman waved as she headed off, leaving Wright and Apollo to their own devices.

"Well, we got more information, but nothing here strikes me as case-breaking," Wright noted, "Let's head to the evidence room and see if there's anything else we can dig up!"

"Right!" Apollo nodded. Ordinarily, the idea of checking the evidence room one more time would've only made Apollo's heart sink at how desperate their case was going, but with Wright here, Apollo felt confident that they'd find something that would help them out with the second day of trial.

* * *

 **December 18, 1:20 PM**

 **LA Police Department**

 **Evidence Room**

Apollo's confidence plummeted as he looked around the room.

"Ah! It doesn't make a difference, it's still spotless!" the red-clad attorney frowned, running his hands through his hair in frustration.

"Hey, don't write things off just yet," Phoenix replied, smiling, "Just because we can't see anything doesn't mean there's nothing here. Now, let's start off with the room itself. Aside from the missing trophy, does anything seem out of place to you?"

Apollo glanced around the room, looking for anything that seemed unusual. Unfortunately, everything looked in place to him.

No. There had to be something. If there wasn't anything, Wright wouldn't have asked him to look. Wright likely knew the answer already, but this wasn't about Wright's investigating skill, it was about his own.

Wright wasn't "ready" to retake the Bar exam. Whatever Wright had meant by that, it meant that Apollo would have to keep filling Wright's shoes until the ex-defense attorney stepped back into the ring, so to speak.

Apollo had to find something— anything at all that would help with their case.

His eyes scanned the whole room, looking for anything out of place. His hyper-attentiveness was definitely helping him out a little, but since he wasn't trying to perceive a person, his bracelet wasn't giving him any cues. Trying to take care not to strain his eyes too much, Apollo's gaze gravitated towards the corner of the room, where they fell upon an initially innocuous-looking filing cabinet.

"Hey," Apollo pointed to it, getting Wright's attention, "That cabinet… it's not flush up against the wall. And it looks crooked, don't you think?"

"Wow, you're right," Wright grinned, "Nice catch, Apollo!"

 _Wait… so you mean, when you said look for something out of place, you didn't actually know there was literally something out of place here!?_

Wright moved over to the cabinet and pulled it out of the way, revealing the space behind it. Sure enough, there had been something behind the cabinet. Something both Wright and Apollo recognized instantly.

"Wait, this is Ema's bag!" Apollo exclaimed, running over to it and picking it up, "But what was it doing behind a filing cabinet?"

 **—** **Ema's Bag added to Court Record—**

Phoenix Wright grinned, "Wait a minute, Apollo, don't you realize what this means?"

"What this means?" Apollo paused for a moment, looking at the bag in his hands, "I don't know what this means. Why would Ema hide her own-"

Apollo froze as the realization hit him. Ema _wouldn't_ hide her own bag. Even working under the assumption that Ema was the killer, and Apollo knew she wasn't, there wouldn't be a point for her to hide her own bag at the scene of the crime. Carrying it off with her wouldn't look suspicious, since it belonged to her, and leaving it behind would only implicate her further. The fact that the bag was hidden at all meant that someone else had hidden the bag.

And if someone else had hidden the bag…

"There was definitely someone else in the evidence room on the day of the murder!"

Wright nodded, "Exactly. Now, the question is to find out why."

Before either of them could begin to figure out why the killer would hide Ema's bag behind the cabinet, the sound of the evidence room door startled the two of them.

Whirling around, the two came face to face— or rather, mask— with Gamma, who was arguably the biggest mystery of this case yet.

"They really did a good job of cleaning this place up, huh?" Gamma looked around, "Ah, so you two were already in here."

 _Already? What's that supposed to mean?_ Apollo pondered as Gamma stepped further into the room.

"That was an impressive show in court today, Gamma," Wright replied, "In this day and age, it's nice to see there's a rookie who won't jump on an easy win."

"I'm flattered to hear that from such a respected defense attorney," Gamma replied, "However, I didn't come here to talk about today's trial. Unfortunately, since I plan to investigate here, I'll have to kick you two out."

 _Considering we wouldn't even be allowed in here if it weren't for you, I'd say we don't have much room to complain._ Apollo thought dryly.

"Wait," Wright frowned, placing his hand on his chin, "Say, Gamma, before we leave, would you mind answering a few of our questions?"

"Huh? Asking the prosecutor for help, are we?" Gamma asked, tilting his head in confusion, "I hope you're not trying to trick me because I'm a rookie. Well, at any rate, I'm curious as to what you'd have to ask me, so go ahead."

"Thank you," Wright nodded, "I want to ask you some questions about the case. At the end of the trial, you received a notice that an entire case file had gone missing. Ms. Newton already told us the filing cabinet the case had been stored in was left unlocked, but I'd like to hear what you know about the case."

Gamma paused, as though filtering through the information he knew and sorting out which parts he should share, "Without revealing too much, the case was designated as HC-4. It was a case from two years ago that technically went unsolved. I have no idea why that case in particular went missing, but I can almost assure you it's unrelated to this case."

Apollo's bracelet tightened around his wrist, and the red-clad attorney's eyes widened.

 _H-he's… he's lying! Now's my chance!_

 **"** **HOLD IT!"**

Wright jumped at Apollo, turning to look at him in confusion until he noticed Apollo rubbing his wrist near his bracelet.

"Gamma, there was something odd about what you just said. Do you mind repeating it?"

"Hmm… that's a weird request, but sure…"

 _This is it, I'll catch that lie of yours!_

Apollo focused his eyes on Gamma as time seemed to slow around him.

"The… case… was… designated… as… HC-4... It… was… a… case… from… two… years… ago… that… technically… went… unsolved…. I… have… no… idea… why… that… case… in… particular… went… missing…, but… I… can… almost… assure… you… it's… unrelated… to… this… case….

 _W-what!? I can't find it! I can't find it at all! I know he has one… I subconsciously picked up on it… so where…._

"G-Gah!"

Apollo squeezed his eyes shut and doubled over, having strained them earlier by meticulously scanning the room. Gamma's tell was particularly hard to find, an Apollo couldn't use his perception on him in this state.

"Apollo, are you okay?" Wright asked, placing a hand on the red-clad lawyer's shoulder.

"Yeah… I'm fine… I just-"

Behind them, both Gumshoe and Ms. Newton made their way into the evidence room, leaving the otherwise small room quite crowded. Gamma turned around and nodded.

"Alright, you two are here. Let's begin the investigation," the masked man replied, "If Mr. Justice is fine, I'm going to have to ask you two to leave immediately."

"Right, thank you for your time, Prosecutor Gamma," Wright replied.

The older lawyer guided Apollo out of the evidence room, weaving around the three investigators around the door and making their way back out into the lab.

* * *

 **December 18, 12:56 PM**

 **LA Police Department**

 **Forensics Lab**

Not too long after Apollo and Phoenix left the evidence room, Apollo stood up straight again, fully recovering from the incident before. Turning back towards the evidence room doors, the red-clad attorney sighed.

"I'm sorry, Wright," Apollo frowned, "I couldn't get more out of Gamma…"

"It's alright," Wright reassured, "You put a lot of strain on your eyes to find this bag… I get why you couldn't perceive Gamma for very long. Still, that wasn't like you. Usually you find a person's tell right away."

"I know…" Apollo frowned, "I don't get it either. I could tell he was lying, but I couldn't find anything giving him away. I looked everywhere for the smallest movement… but there wasn't anything…"

"Hmm…" Wright frowned, "That's strange. I wonder why you couldn't-"

"Hey! It's you!"

An angry voice behind Apollo made the two lawyers jump, and the two were met with the scowling face of Victor Darke.

 _Wonderful. Just who I wanted to see._ Apollo thought dryly.

"You made a fool of me in court today, Mr. Injustice." Victor scoffed, "I hope you're happy. Luckily for you, I am unbiased in my work, or I might've thrown the test results out of spite."

 _Yikes! He really isn't happy to see me…_

"Anyway, I see you've brought someone different along to fumble around the crime scene. Wright, was it? I've heard a lot about you. Too bad you've sided with this loser in court."

 _Uh, actually, I believe I sided with him…_ Apollo remarked internally, _You know, considering I work for him and all._

"Well, anyway, you look like you're at a loss for what to do next. That doesn't really surprise me. I bet you were gonna ask anyway, but feel free to question me. I'll crush all your hopes and dreams before court tomorrow!"

Apollo glanced at Wright as the man slumped over, an exasperated look on his face. He was sure to cast a sympathetic look towards his boss before turning towards Victor.

"Alright," Apollo nodded, "Actually, there was something I wanted to ask about. Ms. Newton said there was an explosion in the labs here yesterday. Could you tell us anything about that incident?"

"Tch, so you heard about that, huh?" Victor frowned, "Yeah. It was a real pain to deal with. One second, I'm performing a DNA test, the next second, there's a deafening bang, and a large fireball erupts from one of the burners over there! We all had to clear out of the lab, but what gets my blood boiling is thinking about the incompetent buffoon that caused the whole mess!"

"Hmm," Apollo frowned, "That's strange. We were told by Ms. Newton that the explosion was just an accident…"

"Hmph," Victor frowned, "Yeah, it was, allegedly. But honestly, that monkey is so incompetent I wouldn't be surprised if he did something wrong! Too bad I wasn't looking! I could've caught him screwing up and blowing up the lab! Maybe he would've even gotten fired!"

 _Yeesh! This Victor guy sure has a bone to pick with whoever it is he's talking about._

"Uh, this 'monkey', as you called him… he wouldn't happen to have an actual name, would he?" Apollo asked.

"It was Fanne! Derek Fanne! That good-for-nothing clutz who's always obsessing over your defendant! I bet he broke the burner with his idiocy!"

"Hmm," Wright pondered, tapping his chin in thought. Apollo turned around to face his boss.

"Victor seems to have a lot to say about Mr. Fanne, and none of it's good. Maybe we should try asking about their relationship."

"Good idea," Apollo nodded. Turning back to Victor, Apollo continued with their questioning.

"Mr. Fanne's your coworker, right? Why do you sound so angry whenever you talk about him?"

"Tch, are you kidding!?" Victor fumed, stomping on the ground with enough force that it jingled the little cat bell around his neck, "Derek's a total joke! How he passed the forensics exam at all is beyond me, let alone how he kept his job for two years! He's a complete dunce at everything he does, and he always has that goofy smile on his face. Even if he messes something up big time, he'll still go back to smiling like nothing even happened! And he won't ever shut up about Detective Skye! It's always 'Skye' this, and 'Skye' that! I'm sick of hearing that stupid name!"

 _YIKES! I'm almost sorry I asked…!_

"Hmm… I think there's just one more thing I want to ask you."

"What!? You've already got me riled up talking about that incompetent fool! What else could you possibly want to pester me with!?"

Apollo let his shoulders slump as his hair spikes drooped down in front of his forehead, but he pressed on regardless.

"What do you know about the HC-4 Incident?"

Victor scratched his head.

"HC-4… that's the name of the case file that disappeared, isn't it? I've heard that name being thrown around recently. However, I don't really know much about the case. I'm sure it's not really related to the case."

 _Damn... I thought for sure, since Victor worked in forensics, he'd have an idea about the case._

"Alright, thank you for your time," Apollo replied. As soon as he spoke, Victor scoffed and turned around, rushing off without saying anything more.

"Hmm…" Wright frowned, "We can't investigate the evidence room until Gamma is done with his investigation, and it doesn't appear there's anyone else we can talk to here. Any ideas, Apollo?"

"Hmm, I don't know," Apollo frowned, "I guess we could go down to the other evidence lab to talk to Ms. Newton again… But wait! We don't know where it is, do we?"

Wright shook his head, "And there's no one around to tell us either… Hmm… maybe it's time we visit Ema down at the detention center. What do you say?"

"Ema?" Apollo asked, puzzled, "But I thought I told you, Ema doesn't remember anything about the incident."

Instead of replying, Wright merely grinned, making his way towards the elevator to leave the precinct. Apollo sighed and followed his boss, sighing internally at Wright's ever-present coyness.

 ** _To Be Continued..._**

* * *

 **AN: It's been WAY to long since I last updated this, and for that, I apologize. It took the Phoenix Wright anime and news of Phoenix Wright 6 to jolt me back into a mood to write for this series, but now that I'm back, I'm going at full steam. I've also been working on _another story_** **that I haven't updated in a criminally long time, so if you're one of my readers who has me followed, but was waiting for an update to that particular tale, I won't keep you waiting much longer I hope. Anyway, hope you enjoyed, and as always, reviews are appreciated!**


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